- Olympic gold in kayaking two for lemke and hoof
Canoeists Max Lemke and Jacob Schopf won the gold medal at the Olympics in Paris. The duo prevailed in the men's kayak double 500 meters. The second German medal hope, Max Rendschmidt and Tom Liebscher-Lucz, finished fifth. For the first time in Olympic canoe history, two German kayak doubles could have won a medal in the men's event.
Rendschmidt, Lemke, Schopf, and Liebscher-Lucz had already won gold together in the kayak four 500 meters on Thursday.
At the Tokyo Olympics, which were still influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Germans focused on the big boats in the four due to the schedule. However, the doubles races took place later.
The double workload in a short time in the heats was specifically trained for. Thanks to the heat wins, they avoided the quarter-finals. "We support each other. No matter who ends up in front in the double, we can all celebrate the double victory together," said Lemke.
In the Nautical Stadium of Vaires-sur-Marne, where the wind is extremely strong from behind and the water is very rough for the first time, German Chancellor and hobby rower Olaf Scholz (SPD) watched the proceedings from the tribune. The last gold in the kayak double was won by Max Rendschmidt in 2016 with Marcus Groß - but over 1000 meters.
Women win bronze in kayak double
Earlier, Paulina Paszek and Jule Hake won the bronze medal in the women's kayak double 500 meters. The duo had to wait a long time after the finish to celebrate their bronze medal, as it was awarded twice. The German team finished tied with the Hungarians Noemi Pupp and Sara Fojt.
Gold went to the New Zealanders Lisa Carrington and Alicia Hoskin, silver to the Hungarians Tamara Csipes and Alida Dora Gazso. The second German duo Lena Röhlings and Pauline Jagsch finished sixth.
The last German Olympic victory in this discipline was in 2012 by Franziska Weber and Tina Dietze, who won bronze in Rio in 2016.
After their triumph in the kayak four 500 meters, Max Lemke and Jacob Schopf decided to compete in the men's kayak double 500 meters as well. Despite the strong wind and rough waters in the Nautical Stadium of Vaires-sur-Marne, they managed to navigate their canoe successfully, just like they did in their pink canoe during their training sessions.
