20-05-2025
Medals galore for Gisborne paddlers at Asia Pacific Sprint Cup
The sprint racing in Japan featured distances of 1000m, 500m and 200m in the K1, K2 and K4.
The Kiwi team finished third behind a strong Australia team, with a large host team second.
Kennedy backed up her gold-medal win at last year's Asia Pacific Cup in the U16 women's division with the same success in the U18 division.
She completed a clean sweep of victories in the K1, K2 and K4 events.
Newman, representing her country for the first time, had gold-medal success in the U16 women's K2 and K4, and won silvers in the K1.
Webb, representing New Zealand for the third year in a row at the event, proved a valuable member in the U18 women's K4.
McKendry, also representing New Zealand for the third year running, did well in the mixed relays, raced the 1000m in a competitive U18 men's division and stepped up to the U21 division to help the Kiwi men win bronze in the K4.
Kennedy, brother Maxwell and Webb are back training and fundraising for the 2025 ICF Junior and U23 Canoe Sprint World Championships in Montemor-o-Velho, Portugal, in late July.
Gisborne medal success at Asia Pacific Sprint Cup
Taylor Newman – Under-16 women: Silver in K1 500m; silver in K1 200m; gold in K2 500m, gold in K4 500m; silver in mixed K2 200m; gold in mixed 200m relay.
Jacqueline Kennedy – U18 women: Gold in K1 500m; gold in K1 200m; gold in K2 500m; gold in K4 500m; gold in 200m mixed relay; also silver in U21 mixed K2 200m and mega relay (6 paddlers).
Hannah Webb – U18 women: Gold in K4 500m.
Matt McKendry - U18 men: Gold in mixed relay; also bronze in U21 men's K4 500m.
Hoskin out of the medals at World Cup
Double Olympic champion paddler Alicia Hoskin and her K4 crew missed out on a medal at the ICF Canoe Sprint World Cup regatta in Szeged, Hungary, over the weekend.
New Zealand went into the cup without Dame Lisa Carrington, who is taking a year-long break from the sport.
The K4 crew of Olivia Brett, Hoskin, Tara Vaughan and Lucy Matehaere were fifth in the K4 500m final, 1.5s behind the winning crew from Spain.
The Kiwis had earlier finished second in their heat and semifinal.
Hoskin and Vaughan were fourth in their K2 500 semifinal, missing out on the A final and not starting in the B final.
Poverty Bay Kayak Club's Quaid Thompson placed third in the C final of the K1 men's 1000m. He was fourth in his heat and eighth in his semifinal.
Thompson was also 11th in the K1 5000m in 22m 46.05s. A Norwegian paddler won in 21.28.46.
Aimee Fisher won gold in the K1 women's 1000m final – the New Zealand team's only medal of the event, which was dominated by the host nation.
Fisher was fourth in the K1 500m final.
