| Parsons 7th at Slalom Worlds, Secures Berth for U.S. in 2008 Olympic Games |
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| Saturday, September 22, 2007 |
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FOZ DO IGUACU, Brazil – United States paddler Scott Parsons (Bethesda, Md.) finished 7th in the final of the men’s single kayak on Saturday at the 2007 ICF Slalom World Championships in Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil. His finish secured a spot for the U.S. in the event at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
Parsons, who finished 6th for the U.S. at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, clocked a combined time of 191.50 seconds for his semifinals and finals runs on the Itaipu Whitewater Canal to secure 7th place and a berth for the U.S. at the Beijing Games.
Parsons, who began the day as the top seed in the semifinal, clocked a semifinal run of 95.30 seconds without penalties, placing him 8th among the top 10 to advance to the final.
In his finals run, he was 5th overall, clocking an errorless 96.20-second finish. Parsons finished 5.25 seconds behind gold medalist Sebastian Combat of France. His overall time was just 2.16 seconds out of the medals. Combat, who secured the third consecutive world title for France in the event, clocked an overall time of 186.25 seconds. Fabien Doerfler of Germany finished 1.65 seconds back, taking the silver in 187.90 seconds. Campbell Walsh of Great Britain took the bronze with a time of 189.34 seconds. He was 3.09 seconds behind the winner. Richard Hounslow of Great Britain was fourth, Daniele Molmenti of Italy finished fifth and Carles Juanmarti Santiago was sixth.
In the semifinal, Brett Heyl (Charlotte, NC) finished 37th overall after a 50-second penalty was added to his time for missing a gate. Heyl did not advance.
In other world championships action on Saturday, U.S. single canoe paddler Benn Fraker (Peachtree City, Ga.) was the top U.S finisher with 36th place overall. He clocked a semifinal time of 122.91 seconds. The top 10 advanced to the final. The U.S., which did not quality for the 2008 Olympic Games at the World Championships, will now have an opportunity to quality through the 2008 Pan American Championships.
The World Championships conclude on Sunday.
Complete results are available at http://cbca.org.br/foz2007/english/index.php
About Slalom Canoe/Kayak
In slalom canoe/kayak racing, paddlers navigate through pairs of poles called "gates" through a course of approximately 300-meters, set-up over challenging rapids, waves, eddies and currents. If the paddler touches one of the poles or misses a gate altogether, penalty times are added to the time achieved on the run. |
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About USA Canoe/Kayak
USA Canoe/Kayak is a non-profit membership organization promoting canoe and kayak racing in the United States. A member of the United States Olympic Committee, Charlotte, N.C. based USACK is the national governing body for the Olympic sports of Flatwater Sprint and Whitewater Slalom and official U.S. federation of the International Canoe Federation. Other paddling sports sanctioned by USACK include Marathon, Rodeo, Wildwater, Kayak Polo, Outrigger, and Dragon Boat. USA Canoe/Kayak’s National Team Sponsor is Bank of America and its National Team Apparel Sponsor is NIKE. To learn more about USACK and its other sponsors and suppliers, visit www.USACK.org.
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