Kimberley Woods wins gold at European Canoe Slalom Championships
Saturday 30 May 2015 23:12, UK
Great Britain's Kimberley Woods was crowned European champion in the women's C1W single at the Canoe Slalom European Championship in Markkleeberg, Germany on Saturday.
There was also silver for Mallory Franklin in C1W and a further silver and two bronzes in the team events, taking the GB medal tally to five after the first day of finals.
Woods, having taken second place in the semi-finals, was in commanding form in the final, and took top spot ahead of team-mate Franklin by nearly three seconds.
The 20-year-old said: "I am really happy. I knew I had the skills and the speed to do well here, but it is a very technical course and any one of the 10 girls in the final could have won.
"I just love white water and training on Lee Valley sets me up well to be really technical and then it's just a matter of transferring the skills.
"This course here is a bit more inconsistent than Lee Valley, but I kept the boat running well, particularly on the trickiest areas of the course and I think that's what won it for me."
Doubling up for the first time at senior level, Woods will contest the women's kayak single (K1W) semi-final on Sunday.
The C1 women went on to take bronze in the team event to cap off a successful day which saw them all go home with medals.
