Paris2024 pictograms

I love them with a perhaps unexpected level of excitement. But why? The International Olympic Committee understandably has gone to lengths to restrict the use of their intellectual property. On one hand I respect their desire to keep to control over the brand assets and keep them for use by the official partners and global sponsors. That said, our interest is to promote the sport(s) widely to the maximum potential audience.

In Rio for example, we recorded video interviews with athletes in bathrooms because they were one of the few places free from IOC brand intellectual copy. That’s verging towards the ridiculous.

In the last months we saw the official Paris2024 Mascots unveiled. However, these are still the intellectual property (copyright) of the IOC. I don’t want to be the subject of legal action by the IOC so it appears the ability to post the mascots is limited. Shame.

So why I am excited is that the Paris2024 Organizing Committee rather than IOC has launched 62 pictograms with the pledge that enthusiasts are encourage to use, post and share them. In effect they come under a Creative Commons (royalty free copyright) use. I am not a lawyer, yet that is my lay interpretation. I have asked ICF and Paris2024 for clarification.

The international canoeing community is encouraged to visit the pictogram page, download them and post them dewily. Hurrah for common sense. Astute marketing. Gold star Paris2024. I hope to interview Tony Estanguet later this year on the ICFslalom podcast. Not only is Tony a three time Olympic Champion in canoe slalom, he was the IOC athlete representative before his role as the head of the Paris2024 bid and president of Paris2024. Go Tony. The Pau course from where he grew up with his brother Patrice is already an Estanguet legacy. There is more. Tony’s children are now appearing in the Junior European circuit. Lots to ask him about. How exciting!

Back to the Paris2024 pictograms

The Paris2024 Organizing Committee has made available three version of the pictograms for Canoe Slalom, Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe. So go download them and then post far and wide across your social media channels remembering to also use the hashtags #ICFslalom #ICFsprint and #ICFparacanoe respectively. Well done Paris2024.

Canoe Slalom Olympians 1972-2021

While there is no shortage of information on the internet, finding a definitive source with accurate information organized in a logical structure can be illusive. Over successive Olympics, I have compiled a list of which national federations have secured spots in which classes and then ultimately, which athletes have later then been selected by their national federation to represent their country. This matrix of canoe slalom athletes by class and national federation have been in separate spreadsheet tabs … until now.

So as you may be aware, I’ve been busy over the last few weeks and months. Realizing that I could transpose the same data from multiple separate tabs into one master spreadsheet from 1992-2021. After some further reflection and soul-searching I decided that it was inexcusable not to also incorporate those athletes from the 1972 Munich Olympics in Augsburg. So finally perhaps we have a definitive single source of the 605 Olympians who have raced across 56 national federations plus the Independent Olympic Athletes (IAO).

I have gone back to the original pdf results and cross-checked against the IOC online database too. I am confident it is 99% accurate. Understandably, there have been a few athletes, who in that time have changed their name(s) and a few who have changed national federation. I trust I have taken all these into account.

In a further dive into the same data I was able to reorganize into a single list of 605 athletes, showing which athletes raced in which of the nine Olympics canoe slalom events from Munich 1972 to Tokyo 2021. It is fascinating to see the notable family names that recur across the years. There are multiple ways to slice and dice the data, ranked by the total number of Olympic appearances that places Stepanka Hilgertova (CZE) top, or by total number of medals that puts Michal Martikan (SVK) top with five medals.

I can be counted on to start populating a similar matrix for Paris2024, first with the spots secured by national federations and then subsequently with the names of the athletes selected by their Olympic associations. We have five athletes who on paper could secure spots at their 5th consecutive Olympics. They are Maialen Chourraut (ESP), Ander Elosegi (ESP), Takuya Haneda (JPN), Luuka Jones (NZL), and Peter Kauzer (SLO). Could Michal Martikan (SVK) make a 6th Olympic Games to match those by Stepanka Hilgertova (CZE). Several athletes, including Olympic Champion Jessica Fox (AUS) might be anticipated to race in a fourth consecutive Olympics.

The gold, silver, and bronze medals from each Olympics is highlighted indicating that we have had 97 separate athletes as medallists in canoe slalom since 1972.

This is all part of a larger spreadsheet which has been consolidating international canoe slalom results from Olympics, World Championships, World Cup series, European Championships, and ICF World Ranking. This information is all part of a broader effort to help educate the media and provide up-to-date results to live race and broadcast commentators. If anyone would like access to this please contact me on social media to request access or email john.gregory@opencityinc.com

While the ICFslalom podcast has become of interest to athletes, coaches, and spectators, it is again a means to help us educate the media and provide them daily updates through the biggest international races. All this wonderful new analysis provides some interesting room for future conversations on the podcast. Daily podcasts episodes are planned live through the 2023 Lee Valley Worlds.

ICFslalom HND series podcast listing

Here is a listing of the eight special daily episodes that made up the ICFslalom HND podcast series.

• Saturday, July 31, 2021 – Recap of the Olympic canoe slalom event at the Kasai canoe slalom centre in Tokyo. Special guests Gareth Marriott (GBR), Stepanka Hilgertova (CZE), Violetta Oblinger-Peters (AUT), Mally Johnson and Andy Maddock.
• Friday, July 30, 2021 – Review of the Olympic canoe slalom K1M semi-final and final.  Special guest Violetta Oblinger-Peters (AUT).
• Thursday, July 29, 2021 – Review of the Olympic debut C1W semi-final and final. Preview of K1M semi-final. Special guests Helen Darby-Dowman (GBR), Jacqui Lachmann (AUS) and some surprises. 
• Wednesday, July 28, 2021 – Review of the C1W and K1M Olympic canoe slalom heats. Preview of C1W semi-final and final. Special guests Etienne Stott (GBR) and Rebecca Giddens (USA).
• Tuesday, July 27, 2021 – Review of the K1W Olympic semi-final and final in Tokyo, plus preview of the C1W & K1M heats. Special guests Jasmin Schornberg (GER), Jacqui Lachmann (AUS) and Joe Clarke (GBR). 
• Monday, July 26, 201 – Review of the C1M Olympic semi-final and final in Tokyo, plus K1W semi-final preview. Special guests Andraz Vehovar (SLO) and Joe Clarke (GBR). 
• Sunday, July 25, 2021 – Review of the C1M & K1W Olympic canoe slalom heats from Tokyo and preview of the C1M semifinal. Special guest Mally Johnson.
• Saturday, July 24, 2021 – Preview of the Olympic canoe slalom competition in Tokyo. Special guests Lisa Micheler-Jones & Casey Eichfeld.

Photo credit Bence Vekassy, canoephotography.com & Planet Canoe

ICFslalom podcast goes live

A special daily series of the ICFslalom HND podcast is now available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. There will be eight 5-10-minute episodes featuring Olympic medallists, paddlers, and commentators reviewing the days results and providing a preview for the next day.

This podcast started as an idea after Rio. We did a pilot episode at the 2019 International Canoe Federation (ICF) Canoe Slalom World Championships in La Seu d’Urgell. That episode featured the teenager Evy Leibfarth (USA). The episodes continued and evolved into this special daily edition.

We hope you like it. Remember to share and leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

The 13 hour time different between Canada and Japan adds an extra element.

Thanks to the many people behind the scenes that help put it together. These include Ross Solly, Adam Collins, Kim Jones, Natasha Wilson, Paul Wilkinson, Jenny Butler, Mally Johnson, Andy Maddock as well as all the guests. It has been a pleasure to connect again with so many of the former Olympic Medallists from 1992 onwards. See the podcast episode listing and guests here.

If you are interested, we are editing on a MacBook using Audacity. My contributions were recorded using Smart Mike and Telepromoter. The podcast is hosted on Libsyn. Several of the contributions were shared via WhatsApp and Messenger. The audio quality was surprisingly OK.

ICFslalom podcast series

After 4 years behind Sportscene and 5 years driving social media for the International Canoe Federation I am back hosting my own content. The new ICFslalom podcast series is available on Apple Podcasts. Originally proposed for the Toyko 2020 Olympics with a test episode from the 2019 La Seu World Championships. This ICFslalom podcast continues through the COVID-19 pandemic.

I continue to post the results of the key international canoe slalom races, including, Olympics, World Championships, World Cup and Continental Championships through 2020-21. Follow @gregiej on Twitter.

https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/icfslalom-podcast/id1493845318 

Reflections from Rio

I have been fabulously privileged to share our love for canoeing with the rest of the World. Rio was a huge inspiration; deeply disturbing; profoundly sad and proof in the value of teamwork.

• We have all grown in our own ways since London 2012. The Olympics upholds the faster, higher, stronger motto. Personal bests. New records. Outstanding achievements. The Brazilian nation. Our ICF media team.
• The deprivation that is very visible around Rio is deeply disturbing. It can’t be hidden behind fluorescent Olympic colours. Nevertheless, we witnessed great individual stories of out-reach for example New Zealand’s Mike Dawson. The fact that we left more cognizant of this has to be positive. We pledge to come back. We ask the IOC to please donate all the stuffed toy mascots to the local kids in Rio.
• The canoeing world is left with a deep sense of loss too. We lost one of our own canoe slalom community. German women’s coach Stefan Henze was tragically killed in a taxi in Rio. Stefan was an Olympic silver medallist in Athens.
• We saw incredible teamwork, the Brazilian’s came together and embraced the overseas sporting world. Athletes from different nations lent a hand to each other. Sport does unite us.

In the space of three weeks, I produced a 24,000-word blog series and more than 1,000 live tweets using hashtag #ICFslalom and #ICFsprint. We have one final post soon on the Planet Canoe Rio 2016 blog with what the social analytics tell us.
Don’t forget the Paralympics. These athletes deserve our attention and recognition too. I will be tweeting #ICFparacanoe @PlanetCanoe
I didn’t compete. That doesn’t matter. I know I have left Rio, faster, higher, stronger and more enriched than when I arrived. Adeus Rio.

 
Featured image photo credit: Balint Vekassy, ICF photographer. In my opinion, the very best image from the canoe slalom in Deodoro. Pictured is Jana Dukatova (SVK).

Rio 2016 blog index

Here is a quick reference index to my daily Rio 2016 canoe slalom blog on the ICF Planet Canoe website.

In chronological order:

Welcome to the Rio Olympic Canoe Slalom blog

Canoe Slalom Essentials

Rio 2016 Olympic Games Canoe Slalom Qualification

Spectators guide to the X-Park Deodoro whitewater centre

Guide to Olympic canoe slalom kayak classes – K1M & K1W

Guide to Olympic canoe slalom canoe classes – C1M & C2M

Canoe Slalom technique and terminology 

Rio Canoe Slalom Athletes

Junior & U23 paddlers on the rise

The mental game

Feel The Ultimate Run

Canoe slalom support from the bank – the coach

The all seeing eye of the judge

Canoe slalom from behind the lens

Incredible atmosphere of live race commentary

Rio Olympic canoe slalom day 1 preview

All eyes on Deodoro

Canoe Slalom Olympic heats day 1 review and day 2 preview

Canoe Slalom Olympic heats day 2 review and day 3 preview (C1M semi-final) 

50-second, 2-second or clear?

Canoe Slalom Olympic C1M day 3 review and day 4 K1M preview

Canoe Slalom Olympic K1M day 4 review and day 5 C2M & K1W preview

Canoe Slalom Olympic C2M & K1W day 5 review

Most Promising Paddler Award – Jakub Grigar (SVK)

Deodoro canoe slalom legacy

Canoe slalom now to Tokyo 2020

 

Remember to use hashtag #ICFslalom across all social media. Please comment through @PlanetCanoe on Twitter

 

Follow the blog series on the ICF Planet Canoe website

 

Photo credit: Balint Vekassy canoephotography.com

Rio 2016 blog – Welcome back

Welcome back to the daily canoe slalom Olympic blog. A whole 4-year Olympic cycle and we are back here again.

 

Welcome to my 2016 contribution that is published on the International Canoe Federation (ICF) website. This is intended to provide the one-stop shop for everything you could possibly wish to know about canoe slalom at the Rio Olympics.

World Paddle Award winners

It is important and wonderful to see the World Paddle Awards grow and build. They demonstrate the true breadth of these incredible paddlesports about which we are all so passionate and help us learn about the people behind them.

“In addition to all my wonderful memories of the sport, it was fitting to see that the future of the sport would be in such capable hands”, says Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Bill Endicott.

Masia Almiral de la Font near Sitges, Spain provided the beautiful backdrop for the 2nd annual World Paddle Awards.

Qualified for Rio

The run in to the Rio Olympics begins. We expect many more paddlers around the globe will be able to say Qualified for Rio in the Canoe Slalom, Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe.

I will be providing commentary on Twitter through @PlanetCanoe on behalf of the International Canoe Federation (ICF). We have World Cup races between now and Rio in all three olympic events.