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Lisa Carrington celebrates with her gold medal - Source: Photosport
Lisa Carrington gives thumbs up after winning gold - Source: Reuters
Lisa Carrington on her way to gold in the K1 200 - Source: Reuters -
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New Zealand's Lisa Carrington won the Olympic gold medal in the women's kayaking sprint K1 200m at the 2012 London Games today.
Carrington finished with a time of 44.638s at Eton Dorney in London to claim New Zealand's fifth gold medal of the games.
Ukraine's Inna Osypenko-Radomska won the silver with a time of 45.053s and Hungary's Natasa Douchev-Janics won the bronze with a time of 45.128s.
"It's amazing," Carrington told SKY Sport. "You always want to be on top of the podium, so to finally be there ... I'm speechless.
"It's cool to be up there, hearing your anthem and not someone else's"
Carrington went into the race as top seed, after clocking the fastest time - and setting an Olympic record for the new event - in the semifinals. But she had lost to three-time Olympic champion Douchev-Janics in yesterday's heats and the Hungarian was also absent when Carrington won this event at the world championships in Hungary last year.
After Pole Marta Walczykiewicz made a fast start, Carrington gradually reined her in, hit the front and crossed the finish line almost half a second ahead - a massive margin over this distance. A headwind meant she couldn't match her Olympic-best of 40.528s.
"To be the first female to win the K1 200 at the Olympics is cool. To win a gold medal, you never dream of it. You do dream, but you never think it can be reality.
"Last year was my first racing the K1 200 and I thought 'wow, those chicks are fast'. Winning the world champs with the Olympics coming up this year, and being there amongst it, I thought this could be something I'm good at."
Earlier in the week, Carrington had combined with Erin Taylor to finish seventh in the K2 1000.
New Zealand now have 13 medals at the games, with Ukraine collecting their 13th and Hungary their 16th.