Thompson builds on result

FAST FINISH: Quaid Thompson on New Zealand duty at a world under-23 canoeing regatta. He has just finished second in the B Final of the K1 1000 metres at the canoe sprint world championships in Copenhagen. File picture (supplied)

CANOEING

GISBORNE’S Quaid Thompson has finished second in the B Final of the K1 1000 metres at the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Copenhagen.

The result effectively gives him 11th place in the kilometre race at the world champs.

The result builds on his second place in the B Final of the under-23 world championships in Portugal at the start of August.

The New Zealand Olympic team missed the world champs, and before the regatta it was unclear how many top athletes would be in the field.

However, two of the three Olympic medallists competed, and in his opening heat Thompson found himself up against Olympic bronze medallist and eventual world champion Fernando Pimenta.

The time for his first paddle, three minutes 45.14 seconds, was only seven seconds behind Pimenta; but he had to settle for a B Final after falling just short in his semifinal.

It was not a strong paddle from Thompson — over eight seconds slower than his time in the 2021 National Canoe Sprint finals at Lake Karapiro in May.

If he had reproduced his time at the nationals, 3:35.48, he would have cruised into the A Final with a semifinal win by over three seconds, and been less than a tenth of a second off a medal.

Thompson, son of 1984 Olympic double gold medallist Alan and Australian Olympian Liz (then Blencowe), is eyeing a spot in the 2024 New Zealand Olympic team.

Fellow Kiwi paddler Aimee Fisher won the K1 500m after withdrawing from Canoe Racing New Zealand’s high-performance programme last year, citing athlete welfare concerns.