Bridgitte Hartley will have to make do with just the bronze medal she won at the London Olympics after bombing out in the semi-final of the K1 500m Canoe sprint at the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas on Wednesday.
The 33 year old, was never in contention in a race initially dominate by Azerbaijan’s Inna Osypenko Radomska. However as she slowed after a rapid start, the race was won in the last 50m by the fast finishing German Franziska Weber. Hartley finished 5th, two seconds off the time set by Weber and out of the spots reserved for the final.
Earlier Hartley had looked in good form as she finished third in a morning heat, behind Hungary’s Danuta Kozak and Maryna Litvinchuk of Belarus.
Hartley, who won a surprise bronze medal in the London Games four years ago had attempted to use the 200m sprint – raced earlier this week - as a means of acclimatising to conditions at the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas. She wasn’t too disappointed about her 5th place finish in the B-final of the 200m sprint on Tuesday, feeling that the she’d gotten used to the slightly choppy conditions.
Sadly for Hartley she wasn’t able to get up to speed in her semifinal on Wednesday and once again will race the B-final – which does earn her points on the canoeing world ranking system – on Thursday at 3.40pm (CAT). - Independent Media