(Vaires-Sur-Marne) Canadian canoeist Katie Vincent wanted to push herself a little further.
The 28-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., captured gold in the women’s C1 200m canoe-kayak on Saturday at the Paris Olympics.
“I’m done [vendredi] with a bronze medal. I went back to my hotel room and thought, ‘OK, I have two bronze medals. Maybe it’s time to mix it up, try something new.’ So that motivated me to go out today and find another gear, dig a little deeper,” Vincent said Saturday. “I just wanted to have a really good race.”
This extra effort has paid off.
Vincent’s medal is Canada’s eighth gold and its 25the in total at the Paris Olympics. These are new records for the country at a Summer Games that were not boycotted.
PHOTO EBRAHIM NOROOZI, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Katie Vincent
It was Vincent’s second medal in Paris, after she and Sloan MacKenzie of Dartmouth, N.S., won bronze in the women’s C2 500m on Friday.
She also won the bronze medal in this discipline at the Tokyo Games in 2021.
On Saturday morning, Vincent took first place in her semi-final, but she did not place at the front of the pack in the medal race.
She rather gained speed with power on the course of the Stade nautique de Vaires-sur-Marne. She finally needed a witness photo to separate her from the American Nevin Harrison.
Several minutes passed as the judges assessed who had crossed the line first.
PHOTO OLIVIER MORIN, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Katie Vincent
“I knew I was first or second when I crossed the line,” Vincent said of those moments. “I thought, at least it’s an improvement over bronze. So I was pretty excited. I felt like I had won afterward. You don’t want to anticipate until you know, you know.”
Harrison, who won gold in the event three years ago, had no idea who would top the podium.
“I didn’t sit there thinking I won,” she said. “I’ll never celebrate until I know for sure.”
When the word “Canada” appeared at the top of the chart on the big screen, Vincent glanced out at the crowd of thousands.
I looked out and saw so many Canadian flags flying in the crowd. I think it was a very special moment.
Katie Vincent
Vincent covered the distance in 44.12 seconds, an Olympic and world record, just ahead of Harrison, who took silver in 44.13.
The other representative of the maple leaf in the final, Quebecer Sophia Jensen, from Chelsea, finished in sixth place in 45.08 seconds.
“It’s super exciting. I can only go up from here, so it’s awesome,” the 22-year-old said. “I think this is the beginning of my story.”
Earlier Saturday, kayaker Michelle Russell of Fall River, N.S., finished eighth in the women’s K1 500-metre final, while fellow kayaker Riley Melanson of Dartmouth was sixth.
” [En demi-finale]there’s two spots up for grabs, so everyone’s going to do their best and bring their highest level,” Russell said. “And then I just had to focus on what I was doing and keep pushing and never settle for an easy shot.”