Franklin claims European gold and silver in Slovakia

Britain's Mallory Franklin enjoyed a dream start to the 2022 season after completing the full set of medals at the European Canoe Slalom Championships in Liptovsky Mikulas. The Olympic silver medallist followed up Saturday's K1 bronze medal by being crowned European champion in the C1, beating France's Marjorie Delassus by 1.72 seconds. Ad/> Franklin crossed the line in 1:53.35 to win the title for the first time since 2019 as Czech paddler Tereza Fiserova took bronze behind Delassus in a time of 1:55.77.

CanoeingFranklin welcomes confidence-boosting European bronze7 HOURS AGO After winning a memorable gold medal, she said: «I've felt like I've been paddling really well in this race. It's great to come out and win gold. I am really enjoying my paddling.

»I love racing in Liptovsky and it's my first international race being coached by Rich (Hounslow) so I'm really pleased to deliver medal performances this weekend. «I didn't know what time I had to beat, I was purely locked into my own plan and wanted to really deliver on gate two. Once you get past the drop and start paddling out of that section, you get a feeling about how you're doing.

»I was just pleased to deliver a good run in the end. I've spent more time in my kayak this winter as I am really happy with where my C1 is currently." And the 27-year-old ensured she came away from Slovakia with an individual medal of every colour after securing silver in the extreme slalom — a new Olympic event for Paris 2024. Franklin, who also claimed K1 team silver on Thursday with teammates Kimberley Woods and Megan Hamer-Evans, recovered from a disastrous start to snatch a brilliant second.