CANOE KAYAK. High Performance News TEAM AUSTRALIA. From the National Performance Director. Issue 1: June 2007

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1 TEAM AUSTRALIA CANOE KAYAK Issue 1: June 2007 High Performance News Welcome to the first edition of Australian Canoe/Kayak News! In what promises to be an exciting year of international competition we will bring you the best in news, reviews, upcoming events and profiles. Inside the first edition we feature the opening of the new National Centre of Excellence on May 4, focus the spotlight on Kate Lawrence, the World Cup Performances of the Sprint team, and learn more about the National Talent Identification Program will be a busy year for all our athletes with the and Flatwater squads looking to qualify boats for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. From the National Performance Director High Performance News Issue 1: June 2007

2 We have the best course in the world to train on but we have to race against the top Europeans and that means hitting the road. SLALOM PROGRAM The 2007 season began in March with a trip to Brazil for Robin Bell, Mark Bellofiore and Lachlan Milne. The trio trained on the world championship course and will return again in September for the Olympic Qualification event. Following the Canoe slalom World Series in May, Bell and teammates will clock up the miles on the European circuit with the World Cups in June and July, the Olympic Test event in August before heading back to Brazil in August. Kate Lawrence missed out on the test event in Brazil to finish her post graduate thesis in environmental science and has been looking forward to the World Series. The 23 year old said, we have the best course in the world to train on but we have to race against the top Europeans and that means hitting the road. Kate was joined by former World Champion Robin Bell, Olympian Warwick Draper and slalom team 22 athletes who represented Australia at the Slovak Open from 18-20th May. From mid July, the team will be back in Penrith for the final build up to the world championships in Brazil this September. IN THE SPOTLIGHT - SARAH GRANT Nickname: Sar Home town: Melbourne Residence: Kangaroo Ground Occupation: Student Club: Melbourne Canoe Club Began the sport: 2000 Date of birth: Height: 167 Weight: 61kg Favourite food: Risotto School: Eltham College Men s K4 Crew - World Cup 2 - Szeged, Hungary The 2007 World Championships are the Olympic qualification event, and will be a very important event for the Australian team. The Australian team is currently in Europe, following some positive results in the Gerardmer World Cup in France and World Cup 2 in Szeged, Hungary last month. The World Cup results are being used to monitor the team s progress towards Olympic qualification. Favourite book: It s not about the bike- Lance Armstrong Current coach: Warwick Draper, Myriam Fox Institute/Academy: AIS Career highlight(s): Making 2007 Australian Team Professional goals: 2012 Olympics Sporting hero: Lance Armstrong Interests: Music, going out with friends, travelling FLATWATER PROGRAM Several team members have returned to Australia to train in preparation for the World Championships to be held in Duisburg, Germany August 8th to 12th. These team members will return to Europe in late June/early July. The majority of the team will stay on in Europe through June and July training in preparation for the World Championships. There are three training camps, one in Belgium/ Germany, one in Szolnok in Hungary and one in Belmeken in Bulgaria. All the team will come together in Belgium on July 21st for a final team preparation for the World Championships. The team will transfer to Duisburg on August 7th. The 2007 World Championships are the Olympic qualification event, and will be a very important event for the Australian team. This event is the only chance to qualify the team boats, i.e C2 s, K2 s, and K4 s. The second chance will only be for the K1 spots at our National titles next year. High Performance News Issue 1: June 2007

3 Australia Paddle to Gold in French World Cup Australia won three medals in the finals of the French Flatwater Canoe/Kayak World Cup in Gerardmer. Chantal Meek and Lyndsie Fogarty (pictured right) won gold in the final of the Women s K2 1000m 1.4 seconds ahead of crews from the Czech Republic and Germany. Fellow Australian pair Rachel Simper and Paula Harvey finished in 4th place to round out a successful race for Australia. Meek and Fogarty pulled away midway through the race and really showed their dominance in the closing stages to take the gold. Meek and Fogarty teamed up with Hannah Davis and Lisa Oldenhof a day earlier to win silver in the Women s K4 500m behind Germany. Meek said the result was down to the hard work the group had been putting in as a whole. It is obviously an incredible result and I am delighted to pick up the gold with Lyndsie, Meek said. We have been putting in a lot of hard work and it shows that it is paying off now. Meek made it a hatrick when she teamed up with Lisa Oldenhof in a boat borrowed from the French team and hung on in the closing stages of the race to claim a third medal at the World Cup, winning bronze in the women s K2 500 metre final. In other results Australia s Men s K4 crew of Luke Morrison, David Smith, Luke Michael and Glenn Singleton finished 5th, while Clint Robinson & Reece Baker finished 6th in the Men s K2 1000m. Young Talent Continues to Rise The National Talent Identification is in full momentum now as our stars of the future continue their grooming. The Surf and Kayak to London scheme was established in 2006 to allow our young athletes to set their sights on the 2012 Olympic Games and receive the best coaching and development along the way. Moving into its second year now, the program is already considered successful, with a number of strong results in recent competitions. Jacob Clear has been particularly impressive by claiming the U23 K title at the 2007 National Championships. Athletes involved in the program recently completed a camp on the Gold Coast between May. The squad will continue to prepare before a team is announced for a European tour in September. National Talent Squad Program Calendar 07 Month July August Sept. Oct. Activity NTS Camp - Penrith Mini Regatta Date To be confirmed 11th Regional Training Session NTS members within a region come together for a training session European Tour for athletes selected into the team September International Regatta - Poland National Talent Squad Camp AIS - Canberra Land Base training Date to be confirmed

4 Paddlers Welcome New Facility The new Canoe/Kayak National Centre of Excellence was officially opened on Friday 4 May. Based on the same site as the Penrith Whitewater Stadium, the facility offers AIS athletes some of the best training facilities in the world, along with a new and improved gymnasium to assist with strength and conditioning. Penrith Mayor Pat Sheehy AM was on hand to see AIS Director Peter Fricker cut the ribbon, as the 2007 AIS scholarship holders were also introduced to the guests. The scholarship holders then treated the onlookers to fine display of Canoeing and Kayaking on the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games course. National Performance Director Richard Fox expressed his gratitude to the AIS for the new facility. With the additional support from the Australian Sports Commission and the AIS are scholarship holders will be even better supported this year, Fox commented. We have a great mix of youth and experience in our team and we will be ready for the challenge of Olympic Qualification at the world championships later this year Kate Lawrence, part of the Women s Kayak squad was impressed with the new facility. We are lucky to have one of the best courses in the world here in Penrith, Lawrence said. With the new facility now in place I am sure it will help us prepare very well for the World Championships later in the year. The 2007 World Championships are being held in Brazil, September NCE Scholarship Holders COACHES CORNER Robin Bell (WA) Mark Bellofiore (VIC) Anthony Brown (NSW) Warwick Draper (VIC) Christian Fabris (VIC) William Forsythe (NSW) Matt Gabb (NSW) Sarah Grant (VIC) Kate Lawrence (NSW) Sam Lyons (NSW) Kynan Maley (WA) Lachie Milne (NSW) Victoria Milne (VIC) Louise Natoli (NSW) Robert Parker (NSW) Martin Marinov Role: Sprint Head Coach Birth Place: Sofia, Bulgaria Paddles: C1 Career Highlights: Bronze Medal - Seol Olympics, 1988 Bronze Medal - Barcelona Olympics, 1992 Represented Bulgaria at 3 Olympic Games (incl Seol & Barcelonaa) Represented Australia - Athens Olympics, 2004 Coaching Experience: Coached in Bulgaria, China, Japan & Australia Credentials: Coached 4 Jnr World Championship medallists including two Jnr World gold medallists

5 FLATWATER FEATURE GLENN SINGLETON Nickname: Singo Home town: Melbourne Place of residence: Kew Occupation: Health promotion consultant Sports Commission AASC program Club: Mercantile Began the sport: 1989 at school Date of birth: 10 June 1974 Height: 191cm Weight: 92kg Favourite food: Taco s Favourite book: The Alchemist Favourite movie: The Castle Personal achievements: Degree in sports science and diploma in business School: Eltham College & Deakin University Current coach: Tim Altman and Craig Pickett, K4 Team coach Ben Hutchings Institute/Academy: VIS Career highlight(s): K2 1000m Gold - World Cup 2003 Poland 6 national open titles 9 national teams between 1997 & 2007 in whitewater and flatwater including 6 world championship reps and 31 world cup reps Professional goals: Gold at Beijing in the K4 Sporting hero: Makybe Diva and Lennie Pascoe Interests: Sleeping, mountain biking, golf, renovating houses, surfing and shed time! Lawrence Narrowly Misses Podium Kate Lawrence finished best of the Aussies, narrowly missing a podium finish in the Ladies Kayak in hot and still conditions on the final day of competition. Kate went into the finals in 5th after a 118 second semi-final run, then moved up to finish 4th overall in the final run. Current World Champion, Jana Dukatova, maintained her place at the top taking the gold ahead of current Olympic Champion and fellow Slovakian, Elena Kaliska and Gabriela Stacherova. Sarah Grant was the next placed Aussie, finishing 7th in the Ladies Kayak final. Jacqui & Rosalyn Lawrence finished 24th and 25th respectively and Leanne Guinea rounded out the top 30 in the Semi-final. Amanda Pain finished in 37th, after getting a controversial 50 second penalty, and Katie Etheridge finished 42nd, in the qualifying runs. Warwick Draper finished 8th after 2 clean runs, less than 10 seconds behind the winner Jan Sajbidor. Campbell Welsh spoilt the Slovakian party taking silver ahead of Peter Kauzer of Slovenia. Will Forsythe and Sam Lyons finished 24th and 26th in the Semi-finals. Robin Bell finished 8th in the Men s C1, seconds behind the winner and local hero, Michal Martikan. Bell was sitting pretty in 2nd place heading into the final, however he wasn t able to reproduce the speed of his first run and after picking up a 2 second penalty, had to settle for 8th. The Slovaks made it a clean sweep on the podium once again with Juraj Mincik finishing 2nd and Matej Benus taking the bronze. Robin Jeffery was the next best placed Aussie in the qualifying runs just missing a semi-final berth in 32nd with Craig Borrows coming in at number 41. The Hochschorner brothers snatched the lead in the Men s C2, holding on to a 0.02 second lead over fellow Slovakian brother combination of Ladislav and Peter Skantar. Czech Republic pair Jaroslav Volf & Ondřej Stepanek finished 3rd. The Australian crews of Tom Baker-Gabb & Tim and Karl Hageman & Chris Horlyck finished 18th and 19threspectively. The Slovak Open was the 2nd in the World Series, following the Australian Open and has already proven to be a success, attracting over 220 entries over the 2 days. The 3rd and final event in the World Series will be contested at the Dutch Open which is now scheduled to take place on the 6-7th July, 2008 at the Dutch Water Dreams course in Zoetermeer, Netherlands. CONGRATULATIONS TEAM AC! Congratulations to Kate Heeley who was appointed Chief Executive Officer. At the recent Annual General Meeting in Adelaide, the new Board of Directors for Australian Canoeing was appointed. Welcome to: Ian Muir (QLD), Jim Murphy (SA), Danielle Woodward (VIC), David Lunn (NSW) & Martyn Clancy-Lowe (WA)

6 Australian Team Battles Wind and Waves at World Cup Strong winds, cool temperatures and the presence of powerhouse teams like Hungary and Germany made it a challenging com- petition for most participants on Day 1 of World Cup 2, however the Australian men s K4 crew produced a 3rd in their Semi-final, making them the first to qualify for a final at a major interna- tional event since Luke Morrison, David place behind the winning in the B final at the world Head Coach, Martin Maof the world championships Earlier in the afternoon, the Lisa Oldenhof and Lyndsie Fogthe women s K4 500 metres, 1.2 crews. Smith, Luke Michael and Glenn Singleton had to be content with a 9th Slovak team, taking comfort in their improvement from a 4th place championships last year. rinov, said this is an important step forward for the crew ahead and Olympic Qualification in August. women s K4 500 metre crew of Chantal Meek, Hannah Davis, arty paddled a strong race to place fourth in the A final of seconds behind the winners Germany and two Hungarian Fogarty and Meek completed a busy day of six races with the final of the women s K1 1000m finishing upset winner Carrie Johnson of fourth and fifth respectively, behind the the USA who pipped local favourite, Katalin Kovacs, on the line. Other Australian A finalists were Paula Harvey and Rachel Simper who placed 9th in the women s K2 1000m and Ken Wallace who slipped to 9th in the men s K metre final after being the fastest qualifier from the semi finals. Wallace was clearly disappointed after his semi final which saw him chase down a stages to take the win, however he is conhim a valuable lesson ahead of the final stunning performance in the strong field over the closing fident the mistake provided World Cup in France. Richly finished 5th in the B fi- 3rd in the newly created C inson and David Rho- water in the semi final ing to keep to the centre of the In other results, Torsten Lachmann and Silvio nal of the C2 1000m. Simon Martin finished final of the men s K1 1000m, while Clint Robdes had a tough day at the office, shipping and then being disqualified for faillane in the men s K2 1000m C final. Tate Smith and Reece Baker showed promise in their K metre heat, narrowly missing out on a direct qualification from their heat to the final and were later eliminated at the semi final stage. The wind eased on Day 2, creating fairer conditions for the competitors at the Szeged World Cup, however there were mixed fortunes for the Australians on the course. The women s team reinforced their potential to qualify places for the Beijing Olympics with two crews finishing within the required standard in the K2 women s 500 metre B final against strong opposition from eventual winners Slovakia, Germany as well as Japan and Hungary. Lyndsie Fogarty and Lisa Oldenhof had finished fourth in their semi final and were a close second to Great Britain in the B final. Paula Harvey and Rachel Simper missed the A final by less than three tenths of a second and went on to finish 5th in the B final. Andrea Wood continued her improvement in the K1 500m event since last year finishing 5th in the B final. There is more to come from the women s team said Head Coach, Martin Marinov, after the competition and here we showed we are on track for the qualification, he added. In the men s events the best performances came from the men s K4 crew who finished 3rd in the B final of the non Olympic 500m event showing an improvement in their speed over 500 metres compared to previous outings. Reece Baker contested the C final of the K1 500 metres finishing 6th while the C2 pair of Torsten Lachmann and Silvio Richly as well as both K2 pairings, Clint Robinson & David Rhodes and Tate Smith & Simon Martin, were also eliminated in semi finals.

7 Brown Commits to Aussie Future Australia s ranks for the 2007 World Championships and 2008 Beijing Olympic Games are looking stronger than ever as the team begins its international season. Former Great Britain paddler Anthony Brown received his certificate of citizenship at a ceremony at the Penrith City Council on Wednesday 2 May. He was presented his official certificate by Penrith City Mayor Pat Sheehy AM and local member for Penrith, Karyn Paluzzano. Since making the switch to green and gold in 2004, Brown has quickly adapted himself to life in Australia. Most recently, Anthony picked up a bronze at the World Series - Australian Open, on his new found home soil. Brown was in fine company with former compatriot, Campbell Walsh taking out the Men s Kayak ahead of Australian, Helmut Oblinger. He s now established himself as the leading kayak paddler on the Australian team and looks set to be a strong contender in the up-coming International Tour. HIGH PERFORMANCE CALENDAR OF EVENTS 2007 Dates High Performance Events Discipline 15-17th June ICF International Ruhr Regatta Sprint-U23 Bochum, Germany 23-24th June, 2007 ICF International Regatta Bydgoszcz, Poland Sprint-U23 30th June-1st July, 2007 World Cup 1 Prague, Czech Republic 7-8th July, 2007 World Cup 2 Tacen, Slovenia 14-15th July, 2007 World Cup 3 Augsburg, Germany, th August, 2007 ICF International World Championships Duisburg, Germany 16-19th August, 2007 Test Event Beijing, China 23-26th August, 2007 Test Event Beijing, China 19-23rd September, 2007 World Championships Foz d Iguazu, Brazil 13-14th October, 2007 Dutch Open World Series Netherlands TEAM 22 & UNDER 23 TOUR UPDATES The Under 23 Sprint team arrvied in Germany last week and have begun training in Bochum. The team have acclimatised well to the conditions and have trained solidly since their arrival. A visit from members of the Senior Ladies and Men s K4 crews was a welcome boost ahead of their first competition at the ICF International Ruhr Regatta in Bochum, Germany from the 15th - 17th June. The Team 22 have returned from their International tour with mixed results. There were some strong performances, including Will Forsythe raced who raced well in Merano and came close to a medal. The team gained some invaluable experience competing in Europe on Sprint Sprint several natural courses and will no doubt take great confidence away from the tour. Zlatan Ibrahimbegovic was reasonably happy with the results achieved, but lamented on costly mistakes. There were some positive performances amongst the team, however too many touches across the board kept them out of the medals, Ibrahimbegovic said.

8 JONES LEADS JUNIOR SUCCESS INTERNATIONALLY Local Penrith Junior, Ben Jones lead the charge for the Australian Team 22, taking home silver in the Men s Junior K1 in Tacen, Slovenia earlier this month. Jones put in two consistent runs to finish just 2 seconds behind Swiss competitor Guillaume Bandelier. CONTACT US CANOE KAYAK SLALOM NATIONAL CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE McCarthys Lane Cranebrook, NSW 2750 PO Box 4246 Penrith, NSW 2750 Ph: (02) Fax: (02) Rosalyn Lawrence continued her strong performances on tour finishing 9th in the Ladies K1 event on Saturday in Tacen. Lawrence followed up with another good performance in Merano this week, narrowly missing a medal back in 4th. Richard Fox National Performance Director Myriam Fox Head Coach Natasha DePaola Program Manager CANOE KAYAK SPRINT NATIONAL CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE AIS Canoe Unit Pizzey Drive Mermaid Waters, Qld 4218 PO Box 190 Robina, QLD 4226 Ph: (07) Fax: (07) Lauren Fitzsimons High Performance Program Coordinator Martin Marinov Sprint Head Coach Brian Hopley Sprint Program Manager ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS