Ben Fouhy World Champion K1 1000m Kayaking New Zealand

Results

Ben Fouhy — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 02:37:45 +0000

Today was important for me and another improvement and step forward on my return to the sport. We are very pleased with my 3rd placing in the B Final. Also pleasing was my time relative to the winner who arguably was a serious medal contender who like many other class athletes here didnt cope optimally with the conditions in the semi finals. Obviously comparing A Final and B Final times is pointless as there was over and hour between them and an obvious shift in the wind. However a very impressive Final to watch. Congratulations to Max, Tim and Aleh.

Overall the best 1000m I have been able to put together in a long time and there are no mysteries as to where to from here. I feel confident with the new opportunities I can get back to my best and from there build on that. Im very excited about the next two years.

World Championships

Ben Fouhy — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 05:04:50 +0000

Hi there,

Just a quick note to say thank you for all the support!!!

As many are aware we are now in Poznan, Poland contesting the World Kayak and Canoe sprint World Championships.

Today we had the heats and semi finals for the K1 1000m. It is my first time in the start gates since the Olympic final in Beijing. I have to say it is nice to be back competing.

The conditions today were testing for the best of paddlers. In my heat a fellow competitor fell in while in the start block and Ive now heard of 5 other competitors taking a swim with in a half hour period due to the very strong tail wind and waves and swell. I didnt paddle well enough in the heats and paddle to my seed therefore ended up in a very competitive semi final draw with some serious class paddlers.

I am pleased that I adapted to the conditions (Thanks to K4 paddler Mike Walkers surf ski paddling tips) and used all of my own experience to paddle comparatively 5 seconds better in the semi final than I did in the heats to finish 5 seconds behind the winner of our semi final. In other races my time was far more competitive although as always one needs to be careful comparing one race to another. It is possible though in other races I could have made the A final anyhow given my build up this is reality.

Next stop is Saturday morning B Final with Mr Van Koeverden and many other very good paddlers.

San Diego

Ben Fouhy — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 10:22:49 +0000

It is nice to finally be able to update my blog with a level of certainty around my direction for the next few years. For sure it has been a bumpy year but it has been worthwhile as I now have a fantastic opportunity to prepare for the London Olympics with some clarity.

Thank you to my family, friends and sponsors and the NZFA, CRNZ and SPARC.

We are currently in San Diego training at the USA Olympic training centre. The environment is very nice with a conducive climate for training, a good sized lake with a 3km course. It is a positive place to be with other World class athletes who are driven with the same motivation. It has been interesting learning about other sports and seeing how different athletes train.

I have been dealing with a wrist injury for a while. It is improving slowly and has been quite uncomfortable although its not hard to find perspective. Only a few doors down we have the current World BMX champ and the next best USA rider both with collapsed lungs and a lacerated liver with their Worlds only a few weeks away! If there is one constant in sport it is adversity and it seems that even World Champions arn’t exempt! It is no secret that this year has been far from desirable as far as preparation goes and this seems to be one more bump in the road. I am looking forward to racing in Poznan and doing the best I can with what I’ve got.

New Kit

Ben Fouhy — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 23:09:12 +0000

Thanks to the team at 2XU I now have a fresh supply of compression gear. Its always a nice treat to have some nice new gear to throw on when you are training hard.

2010 New Zealand Sprint Kayak Nationals

Ben Fouhy — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 06:50:49 +0000

Over the weekend we had our National Sprint Championships. We were blessed with some very nice weather and a stunning venue – The Blue Lake in Rotorua, a place where I have fond memories of family holidays when I was a kid. The first time I ever tried a kayak was actually on the Blue Lake when I was about five or six years old. Even then I had the feeling that kayaking was special. The next time I paddled was when I was 13.

Back to the racing… I was very pleased to win the K1 1000, Steven Ferguson was 2nd and Troy Burbidge was 3rd. In the K1 500 I was 2nd with Steve first and Troy 3rd again.

The K2 1000 was a good race with Scott Bicnill and myself taking on Steve and Troy. In the end they took line honors but we definitely put in a solid race.

Overall the regatta was exceptionally well run so many thanks to all the people who made it happen and gave their time. The officials were very friendly and professional which was very much appreciated. One of the many positives was to see was that the numbers are continuing to grow with the fields also far closer together than I have ever seen in New Zealand with some tight battles for the finals berths.

Below a view from the finish line looking up the course and the Podium from the K1 1000. Steven Ferguson to the left and Troy Burbidge bronze medal winner to the right of the screen.

On the way out to the lake early in the morning for my pre warm up there was stunning view of a table top mountain through a valley, with the sun coming up at the same time it made for a spectacular sight.