Friday, November 3rd, 2023.- Canada got off to a strong start on the penultimate day of sprint canoeing at the 2023 Pan American Games in the magnificent setting of Laguna Grande in San Pedro de La Paz, 500 kilometers south of the Chilean capital. The Canadian team achieved two gold medals in close contests with Argentina.

In the early hours, Canadian athlete Michelle Russell left Mexican Beatriz Briones, who was defending her gold at Lima 2019 in the female's individual kayak, empty-handed. Russell secured the 500m gold with a time of 1:51.25. Argentinian Brenda Rojas led the race until the halfway point, but Russell set a blistering pace to claim the gold, leaving the silver to the South American (+0.76).

In the second final, the male's double boat race saw North American victory once again in the 500m event. Canadians Ian Gaudet and Simon McTavish won the race with a time of 1:30.45, beating out the Argentinian pair of Gonzalo Lo Moro and Agustín Vernice (+0.8) and the American duo of Jonas Ecker and Aaron Small (+1.03).

Canada's dominance in speed was confirmed in the male's 500m canoe event, with John Spence and Alix Plomteux winning with a time of 1:42.12. They were followed by the surprising Brazilian pair of Evandilson Avelar Neto and Filipe Santana Vieira (+1.40) and the Cuban duo of José Pelier and Javier Requeiro Gil (+1.54).

In this way, the Canadians earned three medals in the first hour of competition in the Biobío Region and reaffirmed their high-level performance on the water. This medal haul allowed Team Canada to reclaim the third spot in the overall medal standings, surpassing Mexico.

Written by Gonzalo Villegas and Nicolás Olea, translated by Vicente Valdivia / Photosport
Photo by Marco Vazquez / Santiago 2023 / Photosport