9/15/2000

David Hearn’s 2000 Olympic Journal

"There are two kinds of men in this world..."

Photo of David Hearn There are two kinds of C1 racers in the world at the 2000 Olympic Games: those with medals and those without. I'm amongst the second group this year, but banking on my experience of World medals over twenty some odd years I wouldn't rule me out. I enjoy being the underdog. I am working hard to sneak in under everyone's radar and take a medal away from someone who thought they had it all wrapped up. Maybe some countries think I'm such a sleeper that they will have to scramble to find my winning splits before my second run in the Olympic final.

Who else is invited to the Olympics? As of today, 16 boats will start on September 17th and 12 will make it into the final on September 18th. The Olympic start order is the reverse of the current World Ranking determined by the best 3 of the last 5 World Cup races. Czech C-boater Tomas Indruch is first up with his best result of 9th place in Prague. Poland's coach selected Krzysztof Bieryt has a 5th on the 1999 World Championship course in Spain. Surprisingly, 1996 Olympic Gold medalist Michal Martikan of Slovakia allowed his World Ranking to slip with only two races. But good they are, with a gold in Penrith (no longer counting in the World Ranking), gold in La Seu d'Urgell, and silver in Augsburg.

It will be interesting to see if Spain keeps or replaces the pre-selected Jordi Domenjo. Domenjo was the best of 3 boats racing at the World Championships last year, but seems to be getting beat (making only one final) by the other two paddlers including the higher ranked Jon Erguin. Canada's Jamie Cartwright and Brazil's Cassio Petry are pesky, but have each only made one final at the smaller fielded Ocoee River event. Slovenia's Simon Hocevar and I are tied for 9th in the World Ranking. He has made 3 of 5 World Cup finals at races he attended placing 7th in Penrith in the spring. I made 3 of the 4 World Cups with my top races on the Ocoee in 4th and Penrith in 8th. Croatia's Danko Herceg has a paddling style that looks like super-slow-mo, but the clock begs to differ. His best World Cup result was 6th in Prague. Germany's 19 year-old, Stefan Pfannmoeller rounds out the "hungry for a medal" group. He has a 6th place in France this year.

Now we are getting into the first tier recent medal winners starting with Martikan and on to France's Emmanuel Brugvin. Brugvin has a sole silver medal in France this year following his stunning World Championships performance last year. Like me, this is Brugvin's third Olympics. Germany's Soeren Kaufmann is no stranger to the podium. He shocked everyone with his first big win during the 1991 World Championships. Defending World Champion Jon Lugbill said Kaufmann's boat danced like a water spider. Kaufmann took last year off for medical school, relying on his teammates and '91 & '93 World Champion Martin Lang and youngster Stefan Pfannmoeller to earn Germany's two boat maximum at the World Championships. Kaufmann has a bronze medal in France, and this is his third Olympics.

Slovakia's Juraj Mincik has had to find a way to shine under his superstar teammate and training partner Michal Martikan. This is something I can totally relate to having been second to Jon Lugbill in the World Championships 5 times in ten years, more than once by only tenths of a second. Mincik beat Martikan in the Augsburg World Cup Final this year to finish second to Martikan in the World Cup overall. Mincik earned two silver medals, one in Prague and one at the Olympic Course in Australia. Mincik is one to watch, but has had to prove his position on the Slovakian Team nearly all season long.

The pressure is on for Australia's Robin Bell. He will have the home crowd and pressure of being the 1999 Silver World medalist. I can relate to this also as I was the reigning World Champion going into the 1996 Olympics on the Ocoee River in the USA. Bell is quick, but his best result was 4th in France this year. Fairly new and up and coming is Stuart McIntosh of Great Britain. McIntosh is making everyone's split sheets now as he was 4th in Penrith, took a bronze in Prague, and placed 4th in the World Cup Final. McIntosh may be within striking distance of a medal, and perhaps looking to surpass the paddling prowess of fellow countryman, Garreth Marriott, the World Cup Champion and Olympic medalist, the retired mix master.

The 2000 Olympic C1 starting lineup concludes with top ranked Tony Estanguet of France. Tony has a gold in Prague and France with two bronzes in Spain and Australia. Although these are stellar results he did not beat Martikan in the World Cup races. Estanguet did win the European Championships where Martikan was 4th. So rather than continuing to crunch the numbers like a Sports Illustrated statistician trying to predict the medals podium, just sit back, grab the remote and watch the exciting whitewater slalom action unfold.

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Last updated: January 18, 2006