Ben Fouhy. Photo / Getty Images
New Zealand kayaker Ben Fouhy's decision to go it alone this year faces its first test at the world flatwater championships starting in Poland tonight.
After a falling out with national coach Ian Ferguson in March, 2004 Olympic silver medallist Fouhy has operated outside Canoe Racing New Zealand's high performance
programme while still receiving financial support from Sparc.
The four-day world championships on Lake Malta, in Poznan, will be his first international competition this year, having trained solo since May, most recently in the United States and Belgium. He has received some coaching and organisational support from former New Zealand manager Grant Restall.
Fouhy, 31, is classed as member of the New Zealand team and is staying at the same hotel this week, although relationships remain frosty between paddler and team coach.
Ferguson said yesterday the pair had not spoken for months and were unlikely to during the championships.
Bugged by a wrist injury during the buildup, Fouhy will do well to maintain the high standards achieved in his specialist K1 1000m at previous world championships.
He broke through internationally when winning gold at the 2003 event in Georgia, while he has snared a bronze (2006) and two fifth placings (2005 and 2007) in his other campaigns, followed by a fourth at 2008 Olympic Games.
Poznan holds fond memories, with Fouhy having set a world record there at a 2006 World Cup regatta.
The 11 other members of the New Zealand team completed their preparation in Munich and will hope for better results than registered at World Cups in France and Hungary this year.
One standout performance was the gold won by women's K2 1000m pair Teneale Hatton and Lisa Carrington in Vichy, although they couldn't repeat the dose at Szeged.
The rest of the New Zealanders struggled to even make A finals at either regatta.
More will be expected of veteran Steven Ferguson and Troy Burbridge in the men's K2 1000m, while Olympian Erin Taylor is itching to get on the water after missing both World Cups with a rib injury.
She will have to wait until the second day of competition, with day one dominated by men's kayaking heats.
- NZPA
