Nick Harding | @nickhdg | Sportscene – GB sweep: men and women's gold in canoe singles by David Florence and Mallory Franklin, 3 GB team golds and France's Boris Neveu evens things out with gold in K1M.

My last piece for Sportscene is as nostalgic as being here at Lee Valley for the first major international canoe slalom competition since the 2012 London Olympics where GB came away with 1-2 in the men's doubles. Gold medallist Tim Baillie has since retired and crewmate Etienne Stott was today airing his vocal talent for commentating. There was much buzz around reigning C1 World Champion and Olympic C1/C2 silver medallist, David Florence with his undeniable natural ability for long-armed strokes and big frame, he is the new poster boy of British canoeing. World Cup 1 last year in Cardiff David finished up in 5th, redemption was on the cards.

A little chat with former double World Champion and Olympic medallist for France Fabien Lefevre (now USA) is a good starting point for today's coverage; he described the course today as 'exigé' – demanding or requiring attention. He wasn't wrong either as the water was tough-going, many of the athletes seemed to struggle in the morning sodden-wet windy weather – today's menu: several mistakes, little touches, many rolls across the classes and not too many surprises. Fabien, still getting used to life in the USA (which he would recommend to anyone), pointed out how he felt that where he has competed for long in kayak competitions, he 'required that extra attention' in his C1 training. The C1M's event was electric today:

C1M

Semi-finals: athletes lined up, bankside, on the central island to watch the C1M semi-final action hotting up behind them and in front on the big screen. The sun did start to peek through at times, urging the crowd to get behind local British talent and the 30 boats to come.

Some highlights included powerhouse of an American Casey Eichfield touched gate 20 with his left shoulder, Cameron Smedley (CAN) had a real chance to push for the final in the early stages of his run but the wind was taken from his sails in the latter stages – he sadly ended up in last position overall. Italian Stefano Cipressi was staggeringly quick to take the lead, but this was short-lived as Spain's Ander Elosegi was next up and nicked the lead under jubilant celebrations of Team Spain on the bank. Long haired, Australian Ian Borrows made it through in 106 seconds – the familiar sight of Jess Fox running alongside encouraging her team mate.

France's Thibaud Vielliard treated the crowd to an unexpected roll going into 10 and 11 – he couldn't breathe for a few moments leading to some energy loss and 2 further rolls. Japan's 16 year old Takuya Haneda, also wearing bib number 16, moved to Bratislava to get good at his sport, was tight on gate 15 but sadly had two two taps higher up the course, finishing in 25th at the end of play.  

Going into the final, David Florence was in third, with multiple World Champion Michal Martikan inching second and Vitezslav Gebas with a 99.24-run.

Going third from last Florence laid down a near  flawless run with only one 2-second penalty – the British crowd really got behind him, hooting, shouting, giving him a standing elevation in the same way they did two years ago at London 2012.

France's Nicolas Peschier too looked good in the semis as he did in the heats but showed his prowess following a roll at gate 10 and getting over what few iffy moments he had through 18 and 19. Germany's Sideris Tasiadis, 2nd at London 2012, had a well-executed World Cup today but went sideways over the drop before gate 18 meaning he lost valuable time then going on into 8th.

All eyes were on double Olympic Gold medallist Michal Martikan who has quite simply won everything in canoe singles up next, but he seemed heavy handed in the final, lethargic – lethargic I say, he still managed a 103-second run to put him into bronze just behind fellow Slovakian Matej Benus.

K1M

It was the Czechs, Prindis and Polaczyk, who dominated particularly Heat 1 with a 1-3 finish yesterday. Legend and much-experienced Peter Kauzer (SLO) had poll-position in Heat 2 with the fastest run of the day with 94.72.

Semi-finals today, Slovenia's Janos Peterlin starting 12th put down an out-of-this-world run with 95.49. Then 3 paddlers later, 2008 Olympic Champion from Germany Alexander Grimm went 96-seconds; this early pace set by both paddlers just completed destroyed the whole field and no one could truly keep up.

The real excitement was in the final – Etienne Daillie didn't deliver as he did in the Olympics, using up the any energy left in the tank around gate 15; a sloppy middle section meant he was out of the medals.

Hannes Aigner, the 6ft something German number one and 2012 Olympic Bronze medallist in K1, absolutely flew around gates 6 and 7, yet, really surprisingly, he was still down at the first split. He made up the time though in classic Hannes power-style but it was too little too late as he went 2 seconds slower at the second split – he was later down and out into fourth overall after his drift left him almost 8 seconds off the pace.

Clearly the semis had wiped out Hannes and Janos as they could only do as far as fourth and fifth in the final. French-Londoners waved their tricolour-flags high and proud as Boris Neveu took gold; he slipped under the media's radar as he was not spectacular, just efficiently consistent in the previous rounds – interestingly all top three paddlers (Vit Prindis and Mateusz Polaczyk) didn't commit a single fault.

C1W

What a final it was – the rain had stopped and the crowd were high-spirited again. Switzerland's Anna Wider put down a solid run with some brilliant flexibility, if a bit haphazard at times, putting her into an early lead.

Caroline Loir took her time going into gate 10, but shock-horror, capsized going into the upstream gate in the middle section of the course. Her misfortune then continued even further following a touch with her left hand on the downstream gate immediately after - 7th to finish.

Saturday afternoon was all about Eilidh Gibson, on her first World Cup début she was ice-smooth, flawless, no penalties, ok a slight touch on gate 12, she hit the last and biggest drop on the course landing deep, true she slowed because of this but she ducked and dived with such grace three gates before the end to take a completely unexpected first place.

“Doing my plans, being happy with my runs and it's got me a medal. I was pretty low in the upright, I don't know which gate it was but paddling out of the eddy I was thinking, just keep going and I did!”

She remained in first place right up until it was Mallory Franklin's turn who stole the show and the gold minus 4 seconds. “It was nice to come out on top, it cemented my ability I think. I think Eilidh did really well too, it's great for Great Britain to be this strong in C1W.”

Neither World Champion Jess Fox (AUS) nor Monika Jancova (CZE) could challenge Gibson's stunning time. Jess was certainly on the charge but did go a little wide into the eddy at the first upstream gate. All credit to her technique though, a textbook switch though going into gates 17 and 18, but it was a final drift to the left hand bank that was the icing on the cake.

Jancova too took a touch on the chest going into 4th just as Etienne Stott said over the mic “it's getting wild out there.” Australia's Alison Borrows took a near face-slap of a touch on gate 19 going into 9th to finish. Katerina Hoskova from the Czech Republic succumbed to be double hit wobbling through gates 18 and 19.

Note of the day has to go to Qianqian Teng of China who finished in an outstanding bronze to round off the day's ladies singles action.

Team events

Other medals were contested in the team races, where three paddlers from a single nation are on course at the same time meandering in and out of each other's paths.

Great Britain added to the day's medal tally by taking 3 MORE golds; men's K1 team over France and Spain who both finished with two penalties respectively, the C1 men's team narrowly turning up the volume over Slovenia and Slovakia, and of course not forgetting the C1 women rivalled the men's achievement by earning first in front of an ecstatic home crowd over, unexpectedly China in second, and France in bronze. 

Sunday

Sunday sees semis and finals in the men's canoe double and the women's K1 finals.

Recent K1W Junior World Champion Ana Sátila goes in the K1W; she is on top form going into the Rio 2016 cycle in her native Brazil and could give the likes of Jess Fox and Olympic Champion Emilie Fer a run for their money. Jess will surely be looking to improve on today's unlucky finish in the C1W final.

Her coach Ettore Ivaldi told me, 'winning the Juniors was good for Ana and Brazil. She is still very young, just 18, she needs to do more international races; she needs to work for another 3 or 4 years before she can have these results. She is a little bit famous in Brazil because she was the youngest athlete at London 2012. It's good for slalom as many people know Ana. Brazil has many good young paddlers who 'play' with the water, people have a different philosophy and spirit for slalom in Brazil.”

A very wet and windy Saturday yet the crowd were the largest present at Lee Valley since the Olympics Games in London and the reopening of the £6m renovation project of the Whitewater Centre, the action was fiery and an indicator that we are in for an unpredictable and ferocious season of competition ahead.

Results

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• Live results: www.sportscene.tv/liveresults