That's it: World Cup number 2 done. The whole evebt was great and there was such an amazing atmosphere, especially during the finals when the grand stand overflowed and spectators crowded on the banks.
On Thursday I finished 3rd in prelims with a scored of 496 from two rides and scoring 250 points in a single ride. After this I was feeling positive about the upcoming finals on Saturday, as I had met my target of a 200 point ride.
However, after a bad training session Friday, where I agrivated an old shoulder injury, I was a little more uncertain. Therefore, on Saturday morning I decided to jump on for half an hour in a very empty open session to reassure myself. This session was probably the best I had had all week, completing a ride of loop, both spins, both spaces and a cartwheel without flushing. The majority of my moves were working well and I was once again more positive about competing later that day.
The next 6 hours seemed to drag on forever though. With finals looming, I found it difficult to watch the semifinals but did manage to distract me from my own paddling.
I had my routine all set to prepare but unfortunately the times of the competition were still be discussed and changed regularly, which unsettled me. After hearing them being early, then even earlier, and then later, it was finally decided to keep them the same time as planned! Everything then was a bit of a rush but then had to wait ages in the upstream eddy - flustering me a little.
In the competition, I was unable to paddle my best, partly due to not feeling relaxed. In the end I finished 4th, scoring 143 points - something I definitely want to improve on in Sort to reach my target of 200 points in a ride.
Overall the second ICF World Cup was great and although finals didn't go as well, I have learnt a lot, which I'm sure will prove useful in the future.
Photos courtesy of Tom Zach
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