The final run of the canoe sprint k-1 1000 meters event at the 2012 Summer Olympics was held on Wednesday, Aug. 8. The event consisted of the eight fastest riders from the entire tournament, and they all got one more chance to put up a great time. The three fastest times in the final round would all walk away with medals. While the field consisted of eight great athletes, there was nobody faster than Eirik Veras Larsen of Norway on Wednesday.
Eirik Veras Larsen saved his best for when he needed it the most. Larsen recorded a time of 3:26.462, which was the fastest time during every round in the entire event. Larsen was joined on the podium by Adam van Koeverden of Canada, who won the silver medal, and Max Hoff of Germany, the bronze medalist. Adam van Koeverden and Max Hoff also recorded their fastest times in the final round, but it was still not good enough to top Larsen. It is no great surprise to see these three great athletes on the podium because they also had the three fastest times in the semifinal round.
A lot of people were saying that Tim Brabants was the favorite heading into this event because he was the defending gold medalist and was racing in his home country. I do not know if it was age or the pressure that got to Brabants, but he finished in last place in the final round. Based on how he had been running all week, I knew that Brabants was not going to be a serious medal contender this year. I predicted a showdown between Larsen and van Koeverden for the gold medal after the semifinal round. They both looked like they were out to avenge their performance in 2008 their entire time in London. Larsen was looking to improve on his silver medal finish in 2008, and van Koeverden wanted to erase the memory of his collapse in the final round after dominating the early rounds in 2008. You are bound to get exciting performances when you have several athletes that are out to prove something, and that is exactly what we got in this event.
Jake has been canoeing and kayaking several times in his life, and he enjoys watching the sport every four years at the Summer Olympics.
Source: http://www.london2012.com/canoe-sprint/event/kayak-single-1000m-men/index.html
