Bonjour!
Otago paddler Finn Butcher has had a glimpse of his Olympic dream with a superb performance at the venue he hopes to experience while wearing a black singlet next year.
Butcher won silver in the kayak cross at the Paris round of the canoe slalom world cup at the weekend.
The Alexandra paddler was buzzing yesterday as he prepared to fly home for the first time in nearly six months.
"That was pretty epic, really. It’s wicked, and I’m really happy.
"It was a bit of a hectic race, which I guess is what they want from kayak cross. It’s a bit of a spectator sport."
Hectic, indeed.
Butcher said some of the racing was "pretty savage".
After finishing sixth in the time trial, he had to fight his way through a quarterfinal and semifinal.
"It just got more and more hectic. The quarterfinal was especially crazy.
"I had two French guys and a Swiss guy with me. One of the French guys broke his paddle at the start, and that went flying. I overtook the Swiss guy on the first upstream, and he flipped over.
"It was pretty crazy, and the semifinal and final had a similar sort of vibe.
"It’s the most I’ve had to really fight at an event. I’m pretty proud of my aggression but also that I could keep cool and take opportunities when they arose."
That place is not automatically his — there are selection events to come — but his performance at the Olympic venue presents a compelling case.
"It was pretty cool to finish off the season like that.
"I’ve been working hard in training, in both slalom and kayak cross. But I feel like in kayak cross, I’ve got some really good skills.
"Sometimes you don’t really get to show them, so I was really happy the hard work I’ve been doing has come out and got some reward, I guess.
"It was pretty awesome to race at the Olympic venue. The crowd was amazing. And I guess it gives me some good confidence going into next year."
Butcher’s prospective New Zealand team-mate, Luuka Jones, won her first world cup title in Paris.
Her long career has spanned five Olympic cycles, and she is still rebounding after missing almost all of the 2022 season with Covid-related illnesses.
"I've waited a long time for this, but it feels good," Jones said.
"Considering the year I had last year, it's been amazing. If anything, I'm just grateful to be back and grateful to be healthy."
Jones has also earned New Zealand a spot in the women’s field at next year's Olympics.
