Kayaking: Strength in numbers for K4

Kayla Imrie, Caitlin Ryan, Aimee Fisher and Jaimee Lovett have qualified the women's K4 for Rio. Photo / Nick Reed

Time at gym seen as key to crew's leap ahead in race to Rio de Janiero Olympic Games.

An emphasis on improving their physical strength was a key part of the New Zealand women's K4 crew making leaps forward this year and qualifying for the Olympic Games.

The four of Jaimee Lovett (Bay of Plenty), Caitlin Ryan (North Shore), Aimee Fisher (Hawkes Bay) and Wellington's Kayla Imrie have won the Oceania continental spot ahead of Australia for the Rio Games, by dint of making their A final at the world championships in Milan last week.

It's a significant achievement for a crew who, with one change in personnel, were 14th at last year's worlds.

Imrie replaced two-time world champion Teneale Hatton, who took this year away from the national squad, and a win in the opening World Cup in Portugal in May gave a clear indication of the possibilities for this new group.

Making the top three in their semifinal, and beating Australia as well, ensured their trip to Rio even before the final, in which they finished ninth.

"For us, our semifinal was the race we needed and to be honest it was the race of our life," Ryan said yesterday.

They've learned plenty on their European campaign and given their ages - Lovett is 27, Ryan and Imrie 23 and Fisher 20 - time is surely on their side. Or as Ryan enthusiastically put it: "This is only the start".

Along the way, Fisher and Ryan won a K2 500m silver medal in their third race together at the opening World Cup in Portugal, a day before the quartet won cup gold in the K4 final; Imrie and Fisher won the K2 200m bronze at the next cup in Germany; while Lovett and Ryan won the B final of the K2 500m.

Ryan said the work of coach Rene Olsen had been a key factor.

"The gym was a massive focus for us this season. What the Europeans do in winter is focus mainly on the gym, getting really strong, because they don't have the conditions to train in, whereas New Zealanders and Aussies have always relied on fitness.

"Changing to a strength-based programme worked well and everyone made so much progress. These nine months with Rene, it's not a long time but we feel we've progressed so far and it's exciting to see how much further we could do."

And with multi-world champion Lisa Carrington the talisman for the group, these are shaping as special times for Canoe Racing New Zealand.

Paddling high

• The K4 of Jaimee Lovett, Caitlin Ryan, Aimee Fisher and Kayla Imrie have qualified New Zealand's first quartet to contest an Olympic Games since Barcelona in 1992.

• They are the first New Zealand women's four to reach an Olympics, but at this point it is the boat, not the individuals, who will be in Rio, with the paddlers to be finalised next year.

• Beating Australia at last weekend's world championships and making the A final ensured an Oceania spot for Rio.