Come hell or high water

Bridgen-Jones is in the last stretch of her training at the Manly beach in Sydney and her dream of winning a medal at the Olympics is alive again. However,London will be her first Olympic Games.

Looking back on the time she lost due to the shoulder injury,she said: “There were times when I was just reeling in depression,all those thoughts that I could never paddle again would just not go away.”

However one thing kept Bridgen-Jones going — a picture of the entire Olympic contingent that she had cut out when she was just eight year’s old. “I just wanted to go to the Olympics and nothing in the world was ever going to stop me.” said the kayaker.

“I pushed my body like never before,there was a lot of pain but it was worth it in the end,” said the Aussie.

At the Games,she and her team will have to match the best — European kayakers have traditionally held sway at the Olympics — if they are to win the yellow metal.

While the Australians have won 20 medals in the sport over the years,90 per cent of the total medals in kayaking have been won by Europeans. Olympic powerhouses like the USA,China and Russia have not made a mark in canoeing and kayaking,while Slovakia and Hungary rule the roost with most of their medals coming through canoe-kayak events.

But Bridgen-Jones fondly called ‘Brigga’ by her teammates is unfazed. She believes that the Australians have a distinct advantage over the Europeans because the Aussies train in the surf and in the open sea,which makes them physically stronger.

The kayaking and canoeing events will be held at Eton Dorney,a man-made lake just outside London.

IN SEARCH OF A FOURTH GOLD

There are 16 canoe and kayak events at the Games. The slalom event will be held at the Lee Valley White Water Center. Slovakian pair,the Hochschorner’s are looking to capture their fourth straight Olympic gold. Peter and Pavol Horschorner have dominated the C2 or the two-man canoe slalom event since the Summer Games of 2000.

The Slovak twins will be wary of competition from Germany and France – both countries had strong showings at European meets in the lead up to the Olympics. The defending champions come from a rich sporting background. Their parents represented the erstwhile Czechoslovakia in flat-water canoeing and their sister is a former Olympian in the slalom canoe event.

The twins took up slalom canoeing in 1996 and just two months later were European champions. Their win at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 was considered a surprise but consecutive gold medals in 2004 and 2008 convinced the world of their prowess.

The brothers who are treated like Hollywood celebrities back home in Bratislava,Slovakia said,“One thing is that after three Olympics we are used to the pressure,we are just going to go and make Slovakia proud and defend our title.”