Junior Beatriz Fernandes won the gold medal in the C1 200m category at the Under-23 and Junior Canoeing World Cup, which ends this Sunday in Szeged, Hungary, earning her third medal in the competition. The canoeist stated that the feat was something “indescribable”, explaining that it is a reflection of the work performed.
“I have a very positive balance, [os resultados] they are the expression of the work I have done all season and I am very happy about that. It was an indescribable feeling, I just wanted to end it in the best possible way and it was possible,” the canoeist said in statements to the Lusa agency.
The 18-year-old athlete, affiliated with Clube Náutico de Ponte de Lima, won her first gold medal at World Championships, after winning the final of C1 200 meters junior, an Olympic distance, with a time of 48.76 seconds, for the Hungary’s Agnes Kiss, second with 49.05, and Cuban Mailienys Caldéron, third with 49.20.
Beatriz Fernandes had already won the bronze medal in the C1 1000 meters and mixed the silver in the C2 500 meters, with Martim Azevedo, who now climbs to the top of the podium at the World Cup.
Going forward, the Portuguese canoeist promises to continue working towards achieving good results at the next levels, pointing to the 2024 Paris Olympics as a dream she plans to fulfill.
“I will continue to work, try the same results later in the under-23 and senior categories and now think about qualifying. [para Paris2024]. I know it will be very complicated, but I will be here to try and achieve it,” he stressed.
Portugal had already won silver in the junior K2 500 meters, an Olympic distance, with Gustavo Gonçalves and Pedro Casinha second in the final, behind Poland’s Jakub Stepun and Bartosz Grabowski, who covered the distance in a time of 1.28.83 minutes, 32 hundredths faster than the Portuguese.
The four podiums already achieved represent the best national result ever in these championships, after two medals in 2009, 2013 and 2021.
Portugal presents itself in the World Under-23 and Junior Championships with a record of 21 canoeists, guaranteeing the right to participate after the good results at the European Championship in Serbia, with 16 crews in the podium regattas.
Source: DN
