Results and Review – 2021 Canoe Slalom Europeans and Olympic Qualifier, the international season for Canoe Slalom got underway on May 6th with the 2021 European Canoe Slalom Championships.

Not only an elite level championship this event also acted as the  European Continental Olympic Qualifier, with a single Olympic spot up for grabs in each of the 4  categories being contested at the event. The newly selected Irish Team was filled with proven  international performers eager to get into the fight for the final Olympic berths for Tokyo, the full  Irish team list can be found here. 

The key categories in which Team Ireland was chasing qualification were the K1 Men (Samuel  Curtis, Noel Hendrick and Alistair McCreery), the K1 Women (Hannah Craig and Madison  Corcoran) and the C1 Women (Michaela Corcoran). Across all the racing in these categories the  tightest by far was seen in the K1 Men, with the Olympic spot coming down to the wire between  Noel Hendrick and Krysztof Majerczak of Poland. After a great performance in the qualification  rounds Noel Hendrick rose again to the occasion with an even more impressive run the in the  semi-finals, laying down a marker for the remaining athletes seeking Olympic qualification to  chase. Athlete after athlete in contention for the Tokyo spot came down and finished behind Noel  in the standings, with the agonising wait coming to a close with Majerczak of Poland, the last  athlete in the running for the Olympic berth, storming down the course to claim the qualification  spot. While the ultimate goal of the Olympic games was not reached, it was none the less an  extremely impressive performance from the young athlete, making a statement as to his current  and future form. 

In the Olympic battle for the K1 Women it was the experience of Hannah Craig (London 2012  Olympian) which came closest for Ireland. With Hannahs final placing of 32nd being just 0.8  seconds away from a spot in the semi final, and a chance to race against Naemi Braendle of  Switzerland for the final qualification spot. 

The C1 Women featured a similar story, with Michaela Corcoran incurring a 50 second penalty to  take her out of the running for the Olympic spot in her category. 

Outside of the Olympic qualification battle, Irelands already confirmed 2021 Olympian Liam Jegou  was top of Irelands C1 Men. Liam showed his hard winter of training with a 10th place in the  qualification rounds, going on to suffer penalties in the semi final to finish in 30th overall for the  event. The C1 Men team also put up a valiant fight to defend their silver medal from last years  Euros, finishing in 5th place in the final, just one 2 second penalty away from a spot on the podium.

2021 Canoe Slalom European Championships & Olympic Qualifier 

Full results – 

K1 Men 

Noel Hendrick – 24th 

Alistair McCreery – 37th 

Samuel Curtis – 44th 

K1 Women 

Hannah Craig – 32nd 

Madison Corcoran – 34th 

C1 Women 

Michaela Corcoran – 35th 

C1 Men 

Liam Jegou – 30th 

Robert Hendrick – 32nd 

Jake Cochrane – 38th

In Japan, there are increasingly noisy demands to permanently cancel the Olympic Games, which were postponed last year and scheduled for this year, due to the worsened epidemiological situation with Covid-19.

Nearly 60 % of Japanese citizens want the Tokyo Olympics, which should start in less than three months, to be cancelled due to a novel coronavirus pandemic, according to a survey released this week, Reuters reports.

Japan has prolonged the state of emergency in the capital – which was supposed to last until May 11 – until the end of the month and is struggling to stop the sharp increase in the number of cases of infection, which raises additional questions about whether the Games should be held or not. Recall that the Olympics were postponed in 2020 for a year due to a pandemic, should open on July 23 and last until August 8.

A public opinion poll conducted on May 7-9 for the daily Yomiuri Shimbun found that precisely 59 % of those polled want the Olympics cancelled, while 39 % want them to take place. The postponement was not offered as an option to respond.

Final Decision in June

Among those who voted for the games, 23 % said it should be conducted without spectators whatsoever. The arrival of spectators from abroad has already been banned by an earlier decision, and the final decision on the presence of domestic spectators will be made in June, about a month before the current start date of the event in Tokyo.

Another poll, conducted for TBS News over the weekend behind us, found that 65 % of Japanese want the Games cancelled or postponed again, of which 37 % are in favor of complete cancellations while 28 % want another postponement. A similar survey conducted in April for the agency Kyodo News found that 70 %of citizens want either cancellation or delay.

Senior official of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) John Coates said that, although the mood of the Japanese for the Games is worrying, he does not see a scenario according to which the event would not take place.

The Decision Is on the IOC

Yoshihide Suga, the Prime Minister of Japan, has so far, despite the increase in Covid-19 cases, promised to hold the Olympics, but a TBS poll found that only 40 % of those polled support him, close to the lowest support he had earlier this year.

But Suga said Monday that he never put the Olympics first. Asked in the parliamentary committee whether the Games will be held even if there is a sudden increase in coronavirus infections, Suga answered: “I never put the Games first.”

“My priority was to protect the lives and health of the Japanese people. We must first prevent the spread of the virus,” the Prime Minister added, noting that the final decision is to be made by the IOC, while the role of the Government is to do everything to ensure that the Games are held in a safe manner.

Last weekend, Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka said that although she had waited her whole life to participate in the Olympics, the risks of holding them should be carefully considered.

Tens of Thousands Have Signed a Petition Against the Tokyo Olympics

As icing on the cake of the polls against the Games, we also have an Internet petition asking for the cancellation of this big event in Tokyo this summer, which was signed by tens of thousands of people, reports the AP. The petition was mostly signed by residents of Tokyo, Osaka, and several other areas where a state of emergency has been declared due to an increase in coronavirus infection.

A petition “Call for cancellation of the Olympic Games in Tokyo in order to protect people’s lives and livelihoods” was recently launched by lawyer Kenji Utsunomiya, who has repeatedly run for mayor of Tokyo. In the first 24 hours, the petition was signed by about 50,000 people.

The petition states that the Olympic Games cannot be held in a safe way, but also that the competition emptied the finances for other needs, such as vaccination against coronavirus. The AP reminds that only two percent of Japanese people were vaccinated and that more than 11,000 people at the moment of writing this text died as a result of Covid-19.

Olympic Flame Removed From the Streets of Osaka

The petition was sent to the President of the IOC, Thomas Bach, who should visit Japan this month. Bach is expected to welcome the Olympic flame on May 17 in Hiroshima and maybe to visit Tokyo, where protests against the Games are planned.

We remind you that the Olympic torch relay, which should be taken by 10,000 runners through Japan in four months, planned for mid-April did not go through the streets of Osaka prefecture due to the increase in the number of coronavirus infected back then, which was the first signal of new problems.

What is clear and cannot be clearer at the moment is that even if the Olympics – for which online sports bookmakers, such as those at bookmaker-expert.com/bonus/free-bets/, are getting ready their sportsbooks – are held it will be in extraordinary circumstances: without spectators from abroad, with a very limited number of spectators in general, as well as with numerous restrictions for athletes.

Flyweight boxer Brendan Irvine has been officially selected to represent Team Ireland at the Olympic Games in Tokyo this summer.

The Rio Olympian from Belfast secured his Olympic berth at the European Olympic boxing qualifier in London in March 2020, shortly before the event was postponed. Irvine’s competition will take place in the Kokugikan Arena, and run from Monday 26 July until Saturday 7 August.

This is the third official Team Ireland Tokyo team announcement, and currently Team Ireland has achieved 65 quota spots across thirteen sports, with many athletes and sports at various stages on that qualification journey. Team announcements will come more frequently as we approach the summer, with the final team announcement scheduled for the beginning of July.

Twenty-four year old Irvine joins Canoe Slalom racer Liam Jegou and Jack Woolley from Taekwondo as officially selected Team Ireland members for the Games which run from the 23^rd July to 8^th August.

Speaking about his selection Irvine said,

“I’m really delighted to be selected to compete in my second Olympic Games. It is always an honour to wear the Irish top, but to wear in an Olympic venue is particularly special. Tokyo will be its own unique experience. We may not have the loud cheers of Rio, but that won’t stop me. I am looking forward to getting out there and representing my country once more with pride.”

Olympic Federation of Ireland Chef de Mission for Tokyo 2020, Tricia Heberle said,

“We are delighted to welcome Brendan to the team as an officially selected Team Ireland member for Tokyo. Brendan is a tremendous worker, who brings with him a lot of experience having already competed in the Rio Olympics. He can now call himself a dual Olympian, an honour that very few athletes achieve.”

Bernard Dunne, Boxing Performance Director said,

“What Brendan has achieved in becoming a double Olympian is remarkable, especially considering the challenges and setbacks that he has had over the past two years. He has had limited chances to compete, and in his first major competition in almost two years, he qualified for the Olympic Games. This shows his drive and determination, qualities which are why we chose him as captain and leader. It is a credit to him to get where he is and is a fantastic achievement. Brendan is a great example to all our athletes, he followed the path and never lost belief. Through all his setbacks, he had good support around him and that helped too.”

TEAM IRELAND TOKYO ATHLETE ANNOUNCEMENT:

Boxing Men’s Fly 49kg:

Brendan Irvine (Belfast)

Team Ireland Officially Selected Athletes to date:

Canoe Slalom C1:

Liam Jegou (Ballyvaughan, Co. Clare)

Taekwondo -58kg:

Jack Woolley (Tallaght, Dublin)

Boxing Men’s Fly 49kg:

Brendan Irvine (Belfast)