The history of Lee Valley White Water Centre

Canoe Slalom 18 Sep 23

Lee Valley White Water Centre in Waltham Cross has been home to some iconic moments in canoe slalom.

Purpose built for London 2012, the Lee Valley Water White Water Centre course has celebrated the planet’s most skilled athletes within the discipline, and the venue has always proved fruitful to British canoeists and kayakers on the rapids.

Lee Valley White Water Centre history

From 2012’s Olympic gold and silver in the Men’s C2 to Mallory Franklin’s double gold in Race 1 of the 2019 World Cup, in its short history, Lee Valley has seen it all.

This year, the esteemed venue will play host to the 2023 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships where more British success is expected on home waters.

The Worlds are the first opportunity to qualify boat quota spots for the as plenty rides on how GB fare in the canoe and kayak categories.

London 2012

London 2012 was testament to the strength of the British team in canoe and kayak as remarkable displays from the Games created a legacy spanning more than a decade.

Etienne Stott and Tim Baillie’s triumph was Britain’s first-ever gold medal in the two-man canoe slalom, captivating the nation with zero penalties in the Olympic final.

Their impeccable run across 25 gates stunned crowds as the sixth-ranked pair in the world emerged as gold medallists with 106.41 points.

And it was double delight for Team GB as David Florence and Richard Hounslow took silver in the long-standing rivalry between the countrymen.

2014 World Cup

Two years later the world’s best returned to Lee Valley for Race 1 of the 2014 Canoe Slalom World Cup, the first stage on the way to the final in Augsburg, Germany.

The Brits were, once again, bolstered by the home course taking gold in seven out of ten races.

Mallory Franklin’s racing in the canoe and the kayak was a demonstration of mastery as she picked up C1, C1 team and K1 team gold.

Franklin would go on to take C1 bronze overall after claiming another gold at the 2014 World Cup Final.

David Florence bagged silver in the final standings following another set of three golds on home waters.

2015 World Championships

Lee Valley’s laudable power to deliver British success continued into 2015 at the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships.

The 37th edition of the Worlds was the only global qualification event for Rio 2016, and Britain managed joint third in the medal table overall with one gold, one silver and three bronze.

Florence regained his C1 world title with 94.32 points in the final, pipping Slovenia’s Benjamin Savšek by 0.04 points.

Ryan Westley joined him on the C1 podium that year with a bronze medal score of 96.33 as the men’s C2 and K1 teams also took bronze.

The women’s K1 team, spearheaded by Kimberley Woods, claimed the silver in the kayak cross, another Lee Valley success.

2019 World Cup

Race 1 of the World Cup returned to Lee Valley in 2019 where, once again, Great Britain were quick out of the blocks.

Etienne Chappell did not disappoint in the men’s kayak cross, taking gold.

Franklin took double gold in the C1 and K1 categories as Woods joined her on the C1 podium in London.

Joe Clarke claimed the gold in the K1 to top off the first stage for Britain, although it could not be sustained all the way to the final as Chappell came closest with fourth place overall in the kayak cross.

2023 World Championships

The 2023 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships doubles up as a chance to qualify Olympic quota places.

2016 Olympic K1 champion Clarke will be in search of a third kayak cross world title and work towards securing a place in Paris after narrowly missing out on Tokyo 2020.

In the women’s kayak cross, Woods has a battle on her hands against Australia's Jessica Fox, who beat her to gold at the 2022 World Championships.

And British teams across the discipline are almost certain to be in the mix for a qualifying place.

Franklin, Woods and Sophie Ogilvie go into the Championships with a C1 team 2022 bronze medal to their names, as well as a European Games silver, while Clarke and Christopher Bowers will take confidence from their K1 team silver last year.

Sportsbeat 2023

Tags