There was not a hint of disappointment from Kiwi kayak queen Lisa Carrington as double-gold history proved just beyond her reach at the Rio Olympics, .
Carrington had to settle for the bronze medal, well behind dominant Hungarian Danuta Kozak, in the final of the K1 500m at the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon on Thursday (Friday NZ Time).
The 27-year-old Bay of Plenty paddler had been bidding to make Olympic history as the first female paddler to win two gold medals in individual canoe sprint events at the same Games, following on from her impressive victory in her preferred K1 200m earlier in the programme. That backed up her gold in the same event in London four years ago.
She was also looking to become the first New Zealand woman to win two gold medals at the same Olympics and also the first Kiwi female to win three Olympic titles.
Instead, she had to settle for becoming the first New Zealand woman to win multiple medals at the same Olympics and just the third Kiwi female to win three Games medals.
"Amazing. It's the end of a great, amazing, tough journey," Carrington told Sky Sport after her medal ceremony. "There's a lot of emotion, excitement, happiness and all that kind of thing.
"It's probably something I never thought I could do. It's tough, it's emotional, but I would never want to be anywhere else. I enjoy the challenge, I've got great people around me who help me along. I'm just so stoked to have this opportunity."
But Carrington, like the other six competitors in the final, had to bow to the might of the 29-year-old Hungarian who left the field in her wake as she powered away to her fourth Olympic gold, and second at these Games (she was also in the winning K2 500m team and will shoot for a third gold in the K4 500m).
Carrington's medal is the second bronze medal for the New Zealand team in Rio, adding to three golds and six silvers, putting them 16th on the medal table.
Though it was Belarus' Maryna Litvinchuk who made the swiftest start, the outstanding Hungarian had hauled in the leader by the 200m mark, and poked her nose in front at the halfway point.
From then on, there was only ever going to be one winner as Kozak charged away to win, by nearly two seconds, in 1 minute 52.49 seconds, well clear of Denmark's Emma Jorgensen, who pipped Carrington for the silver medal by just 0.046 seconds. Jorgensen finished in 1:54.326 and the Kiwi in 1:54.372.
Litvinchuk missed a medal in a blanket finish for the minor placings, coming home fourth in 1:54.474.
Carrington was never in the race for gold, but her second 250m had been impressive as she finished in a flurry to storm into the medal equation from the tail of the field at the halfway mark.
"She's amazing," Carrington told Sky Sport afterwards of the Hungarian. "It's tough, Olympic year everyone steps up and as you saw today we were all fighting for second."
But she said she had to be happy with a gold and a bronze, to take her Olympic medal haul to three − matching the feats of Kiwi boardsailor Barbara Kendall (gold, silver and bronze, 1992-2000) and shot putter Valerie Adams (two golds and a silver, 2008-16).
"It's been really tough and I'm just proud of the fact I could front up after two races and do my best. I'm happy," she added.
She said when she first started out in sport as a surf lifesaver at Ohope Beach she could never have dreamed of being in this position.
"I can't even believe what I've achieved," she added. "Maybe in 10 or 20 years' time I'll actually realise how big it is."
She also gave a strong indication she remained highly motivated to continue her pursuit of greatness in this sport, after earlier setting an Olympic best time in her favoured 200m event and now securing her first medal over the longer distance.
"It's just a continual growth in whatever it is. There's so much more room that I can move. That's scary and exciting at the same time. I guess it's just putting one foot in front of the other to try and find that growth."
Carrington had only been the fifth-fastest qualifier from the K1 500m semifinals, second behind Litvinchuk in the middle of three preliminary races.
Kozak had been the top qualifier, winning her semifinal in an impressive 1:54.24. And as a three-time Olympic gold medallist and 11-time world champion, her favouritism was certainly justified.
The Hungarian had won the K1 500m crown in London four years ago, completing a golden double as a member of the K4 500m winning team.
She had also won the K1 500m world title twice, though notably did not line up against Carrington in Milan last year when the Kiwi won her first title over the longer distance.
Source: Stuff.co.nz
