- Hegge makes Olympic history with a bronze in kayak cross
Noah Hegge enjoyed the jubilation with his sandbox friend after the bronze coup. Elena Lilik, already decorated with silver, jumped into the whitewater course at Vaires-sur-Marne with complete abandon and hugged the 25-year-old after his historic medal in the Olympic debut of kayak cross.
"I woke up this morning ready, in good spirits. That's crucial for me. Then I had fun here, wanted to ride round after round. I had focused on the start phase," said Hegge, who first bit into his medal in disbelief during the victory ceremony. "I'm just happy to go out with this medal."
Before that, Lilik finished fourth in the women's final and Ricarda Funk failed in the quarterfinals. "He has improved from race to race. I've rarely seen anyone so focused. Those are the types you need," said head coach Klaus Pohlen. "I'm truly sorry for Ricarda. She's the outstanding athlete of the last years. My utmost respect to her."
Hegge and Lilik have been on the water together since childhood, even going on vacation together. "It's crazy, I've known Elena forever. We've done all the school and youth competitions together, been in the national team together for the last years. It's a familiar person, I'm thrilled for her," said Hegge.
The joy was evident after jumping into the water. "I think it's super cool that we've fought through the day together and he can reward himself with a medal like me in slalom. That's incredibly beautiful," said Lilik. Both were once trained by Sideris Tasiadis, who won bronze in Tokyo 2021 and silver in London 2012.
"I trained with Sideris when I was a student, he already passed on his experience to us. Then in the performance class, he always had an open ear for me and shared his experiences," said Hegge. "Without Sideris, I wouldn't be here today."
Hegge's breakthrough came in 2021 with sixth place at the World Cup in Pau, followed by team world champion at the home World Championships a year later. He had no successes in kayak cross before the Olympic final.
Before fully focusing on canoe slalom, Hegge completed a classic apprenticeship as a pastry chef, which explains his love for coffee. "For me, the perfect cake is one you can eat the whole thing without feeling stuffed, but rather light, airy, and delicious," said Hegge with a smile.
Since the home World Championships in Augsburg 2022, Hegge has also been a fashion entrepreneur. "My siblings and I, we're three, we just want to bring our sport forward in a different way, push it, transfer it - with fashion. Not necessarily with a big face, but with design," said Hegge, who often wears a wool hat, even at 30 degrees Celsius. "The nice thing about merino wool is that it also cools a bit."
The Commission praised Noah Hegge's impressive performance at the Olympic debut of kayak cross, recognizing his focus and dedication. Elena Lilik shared her success with Hegge, expressing her joy that they both achieved historic medals in the event.
