Liam Heath and Jon Schofield fastest qualifiers for Olympic K2 200m canoe sprint final

Great Britain's Liam Heath and Jon Schofield produced the fastest qualifying time for Thursday's Olympic Games K2 200m canoe sprint final.

The London 2012 bronze medallists were at their powerful best in the sport's quickest event, winning their semi-final in 31.899 seconds ahead of Germany's Ronald Rauhe and Tom Liebscher.

Hungarian pairing Peter Molnar and Sandor Totka won the second semi but in a slower time of 32.138 seconds.

Heath, celebrating his 32nd birthday, said: "We had a really good, solid run-out and we are very happy with what we did.

"We got out very quickly and the race unfolded well from there. It is great to reach the final."

But there was disappointment for Rachel Cawthorn as she could only finish sixth in her semi-final in the K1 500m to qualify for the 'B' Final.