Canoeing
Egan poised for Global Olympic Qualifier after fine show on Euro stage
By Daire Walsh
LUCAN canoeist Jenny Egan is set for a hectic couple of days as she bids to secure a spot at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
One of Ireland’s most decorated kayakers having reached the podium at European Championship and World Cup competition as well as the World Marathon Championships in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa in 2017, Egan is poised for another crack at Olympic qualification.
Over the next couple of days, she will compete in the K1 200m at a Global Olympic Qualifier event in Barnaul, Russia, where just one spot is available for Tokyo.
Just seven days ago in Szeged, Hungary, Egan finished eight in the K1 200m decider at a European Continental Qualifier in which only the top two were guaranteed Olympics berths.
Egan came home in a time of 45.63 seconds with Great Britain’s Deborah Kerr leading the field at 42.23 and subsequently booking her ticket for the Japanese capital.
Still, Egan, who is a member of the Salmon Leap Club in Leixlip, was pleased to progress to this A Final and was in high spirits when she touched down in Barnaul in the past few days.
“I was really happy to have made the A Final in the K1 200m at the European Continental Qualifier in Szeged against a very tough field of athletes,” she told The Echo.
“At the Global Olympic Qualifier in Russia this week there is one place available in the K1 200m. It’s a very hard qualification process, but I will give it my all as always,” she insisted.
During her stay in the Russian city, she will also compete in the K1 5000m at the ICF Canoe Sprint World Cup 2.
It was in this division that she earned bronze at the 2018 World Championships and she will therefore be eager to leave her imprint on this competition as well.
In a thrilling Portuguese-set showcase three years ago, Egan sealed a podium finish in an outstanding time of 24:15.075.
This left her just under 13 seconds behind eventual winner Lizzie Broughton (Great Britain) and just over three seconds adrift of Maryna Litvinchuk (Hungary).
Egan finished the 2019 sprint racing season ranked Number One in the world in the ICF Senior Women’s K1 5000m.
It is little surprise that the 34-year-old has left such a mark in canoeing, given how deeply the sport runs in her family.
Her father Tom started out as a canoeist in Lucan’s Grade Ten Canoe Club, before becoming the national team manager for Canoe Slalom Ireland.
A few short months ago, he received the 2020 Federation of Irish Sport Volunteer of the Year Award for the county of Kildare.
Egan’s brother Peter is an international canoeist in his own right and a member of her coaching team.
The Dubliner is also coached by her fiancé Jon Simmons. A noted competitor for Great Britain, Simmons is currently employed by Canoeing Ireland as a National Talent Development Coach.