Who are top Olympic hopefuls at ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships?
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The ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships are right around the corner in Oklahoma City.
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The tournament will run from July 20-25 at Riversport’s McClendon Whitewater Center, featuring more than 300 athletes from 50 nations. The championships will offer a first look at the athletes and the course that will host the 2028 Olympic Games.
The competition consists of three disciplines: canoe slalom (C1), kayak slalom (K1) and kayak cross.
Here are 10 faces of the sport you need to know heading into the world championships:
Jessica Fox (Australia)
Age: 32
Hometown: Penrith, Australia
Discipline: Women’s C1, Women’s K1
Jessica Fox is the most decorated canoe slalom athlete in Olympic history, winning gold in both C1 and K1 at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She has a total of six Olympic medals and 14 World Championship gold medals. Born in France and raised in Australia, Fox comes from one of the most famous canoe slalom families. Her mother and coach, Myriam, is an Olympic bronze medalist for France and her father is a five-time world champion for Great Britain.
Evy Leibfarth (USA)
Age: 22
Hometown: Bryson City, NC
Discipline: Women’s C1, Women’s K1, Women’s kayak cross
Evy Leibfarth made history at the 2024 Paris Olympics as the first American woman to qualify for all three whitewater events. The same year, she won her first Olympic medal, a bronze in the women’s C1. The all-around athlete became the youngest to clinch both the C1 and K1 titles in the U.S. Team Trials in 2021. She started kayaking at 4 years old and is coached by her father, Lee.
Joseph Clarke (Great Britain)
Age: 33
Hometown: Stone, Staffordshire, England
Discipline: Men’s kayak cross, Men’s K1
Joseph Clarke is the most successful kayak cross athlete in the sport’s history, winning four consecutive World Championships and earning a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, during the sport’s Olympic debut. He is an elite dual-athlete, becoming the first British athlete to win Olympic gold in men’s K1 at Rio 2016 and added a K1 World Championship title in 2023.
Noemi Fox (Australia)
Age: 29
Hometown: Sydney, Australia
Discipline: Women’s kayak cross
Yes, Noemi Fox is another child of the infamous Fox family. Noemi joined her sister, Jessica, on the Olympic podium at the 2024 Paris Games, winning gold in women’s kayak cross during the event’s Olympic debut. Her role models are her older sister and mom who also serves as her coach.
Jiri Prskavec (Czech Republic)
Age: 33
Hometown: Melnik, Czech Republic
Discipline: Men’s K1
Jiri Prskavec is one of the world’s top K1 athletes. He won bronze at the 2016 Rio Olympics before capturing gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. A versatile paddler, Prskavec has competed in all three canoe slalom events and raced in both K1 and kayak cross at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Mallory Franklin (Great Britain)
Age: 32
Hometown: Windsor, England
Discipline: Women’s C1, Women’s K1
Mallory Franklin is known as Great Britain’s most successful female canoeist. She won silver in the C1 at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics behind Jessica Fox and competed in both C1 and kayak cross at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Franklin has earned 16 World Championship medals, including seven gold.
Casey Eichfeld (USA)
Age: 36
Hometown: Drums, PA
Discipline: Men’s C1
Casey Eichfeld is a four-time Olympian and the most experienced athlete on Team USA. He has competed internationally since 2004 in both single and double canoe, with his best result coming from a fourth-place finish at the 2015 World Championships in C1. Eichfeld spent seven years training in classical ballet before eventually choosing to focus on canoeing.
Kimberly Woods (Great Britain)
Age: 30
Hometown: Rugby, Warwickshire, England
Discipline: Women’s K1, Women’s kayak cross
Kimberley Woods won not one, but two Olympic bronze medals at the 2024 Paris Games in K1 and kayak cross. She first took up the sport at age 8 after watching a recording of her aunt win silver at the 1994 Junior World Championships, and she wanted to beat that result. Throughout her career, Woods has been open about her mental health struggles and now uses her platform as a mental health ambassador.
Matej Benus (Slovakia)
Age: 38
Hometown: Bratislava, Slovakia
Discipline: Men’s C1
A three-time Olympian and nine-time World Champion gold medalist, Matej Benus is one of the oldest and most experienced athletes in this competition. He won a silver medal in C1 at the 2016 Rio Olympics and added a bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. He spent his childhood in a boathouse with his mother, a former Slovakia national team paddler, who became his coach.
Michal Smolen (USA)
Age: 32
Hometown: Charlotte, NC
Discipline: Men’s K1
A two-time Olympian in men’s kayak, Smolen returned to competition this year after stepping away to coach in New Zealand and China. Born in Poland, Michal Smolen moved to the United States at 9 years old when his father, a former Polish national team paddler, became a racing coach in North Carolina. He was diagnosed with epilepsy at age 13 and had a brief pause before returning to the water.
Amanda Avila is a sports intern for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Amanda? She can be reached at [email protected] or on X/Twitter at @avilaonair. Support Amanda's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing adigital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
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