The grand finale of the International Canoe Federation Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe World Cup did not fail to thrill spectators as the men’s kayak single 5000m kept them on the edge of their seats in Montreal, Canada.
After one gold each in the previous World Cups for Portugal’s Fernando Pimenta and Denmark’s Mads Pedersen, all eyes were on the much-anticipated battle between the two great rivals.
Click here for the live start lists and results from Montreal
The bragging rights were finally claimed as Pimenta stood on top of the podium.
Hungary captured two titles in the men and women’s canoe finals, while world champion Melina Andersson swept the women’s K1 5000m gold for Sweden.
As the paddlers approached the fifth lap of the men’s K1 5000m, Pederson pushed his opponent to the limit, darting around the outside of Pimenta.
The pair remained neck-and-neck heading into the final lap, weaving their way around the course but it was Pimenta who crossed the finish line first in 21:57.79.
“I did my best, I think both yesterday and today I did a beautiful and great race,” said Pimenta who also triumphed in the men’s K1 1000m.
“I think I put on a great show for the people here, and for my family.
“I always think about the fact that I’ve got to do my best, I just wanted to fight for the medals.
“It’s so special also because the last time I was in Canada I didn’t win, I took two silvers and one bronze in the World Championships.
“I now have two gold medals, and I am so so happy.
“The medals are important, they give you a lot of things but here in Montreal, I just feel the love.”
Pedersen secured silver in 22:02.61, while Spain’s Javier Lopez powered to bronze in 22:11.37.
Andersson won the women’s K1 5000m in an impressive 24:43.29, putting upwards of 30 seconds between her and second placed Spaniard, Estefania Fernandez.
"It feels really good. Today was really hard because it was so hot. I felt like I was getting really, really warm out there, so it was a tough race,” said Andersson.
"I did have a plan going into the race, but I didn't follow it as well as I expected. My start wasn't what I wanted, so I had to change my plan during the race.
"In the end, it worked out okay, so I'm really happy with the result."
Fernandez crossed the line in 25:15.57, while Germany’s Carolina Heuser completed the podium in 25:33.20.
In the women’s C1 5000m, Hungary’s Zsofia Csorba claimed her nation’s first medal of the afternoon.
Csorba crossed the finish line in 28:43.11, with Moldova’s Elena Glizan securing silver in 28:51.20 and Canada’s Katie Vincent rounding off the podium in 28:57.89.
"I'm really relieved and very excited. To be able to race against Katie [Vincent] and come away with this result is a huge accomplishment for me, and I'm really happy about it,” said Csorba.
"It probably looks easy from the outside, but it's not. I really enjoy the 5K because I have time to think about what my next move is going to be. That's what I love about this event.
"I didn't really have a set plan going into the race. I just try to make the best of every situation I'm in and make the right decisions. Today, I'm just really glad I was able to do that.”
The second gold for Hungary was delivered through Balazs Adolf in the men’s C1 5000m.
The Hungarian finished in 24:50.90, closely followed by Cuba’s Jose Cordova in 25:01.07.
Moldova’s Serghei Tarnovschi secured the final podium place in 25:23.05.
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