European athletes again clinched all the six gold medals in the
2007 Good Luck Beijing canoe/kayak flatwater China Open in Beijing
on Sunday, the last day of the four-day competition.
Germany finished first in both the men's C1 and K2 500 meters.
Britain, Russia, Hungary and France grabbed the gold medals in the
men's K1 and C2 500 meters, and women's K1 and K2 500 meters
respectively.
The remarkable feat made Europe pocket all the 12 gold medals in
the China Open which was held in the Shunyi Olympic Rowing/Canoeing
Park in northeast Beijing.
On Saturday, Britain, Russia, Germany, Hungary, Romania, and
Belarus split the gold medals in the men's K1 and C1 1,000 meters,
women's K4 500 meters, men's K2, C2, and K4 1,000 meters.
Host China took one bronze in the men's C1 500 on Sunday and one
silver in the men's C2 1,000 and one bronze in the women's K4 500
on Saturday.
Briton Tim Brabants grabbed the gold medal in the men's K1 500
one day after he won the K1 1,000 on Saturday. Kenneth Wallace of
Australia took the silver and Sebastien Jouve of France the
bronze.
"I won yesterday and again today. It's a perfect finish this
weekend on the great course," Brabants told reporters in the mixed
zone.
"I usually take on the 1,000-meter course, the 500 is a new
event to me. But the results in the K1 500 this year is better. And
I'll compete in the two events in next August's Bejing Games," said
the Briton.
"I'll first rest for four weeks after the race before start
training again with the buildup for the Beijing Olympics. I'll
train in a lot of countries, so I'd not mind what the weather is
here next August," he said.
In the C1 500, German Andreas Dittmer, three times Olympic
champion, beat Nikolay Lipkin of Russia and Yang Wenjun of China to
the second and third places. Dittmer won the bronze medal in the C1
1,000 on Saturday.
"I'am doing better and better. I need more days here in China,
and I'll spend more days for the Olympics preparation here in China
next year," said Dittmer, who arrived here in Beijing on the night
of Aug. 21.
"The cool weather also contributed to my better performance. The
weather is more like that of Germany and Europe," said the
35-year-old.
"Yang Wenjun is a very good athlete. He was the Olympic champion
and also won two bronze medals in the 2007 world championships and
the China Open. He is among the eight to nine world leading
canoeists to win the Olympics next year," Dittmer noted.
Hungarian Katalin Kovacs led in the women's K1 500 meters, ahead
of American Carrie Johnson and German Katrin Wagner-Augustin.
German pair Ronald Rauhe and Tim Wieskotter won the men's K2 500
meters narrowly. Raman Piatiushenka and Vadzim Makhneu of Belarus
took the silver and Zoltan Kammerer and Gabor Kucsera of Hungary
the bronze.
(Xinhua News Agency August 27, 2007)