The mood is bright within the Portuguese Canoeing Federation. Its president, Ricardo Machado, shared his pride this Thursday, watching the national team perform at the World Championships in Milan. The squad secured two more spots in the finals, a sign of their strong showing.
“We are very satisfied and proud of what was achieved,” Machado told Lusa. “Out of eight boats, almost all of them reached their goals.” That’s a strong statement about the team’s focused effort.
Early in the day, all four Portuguese crews easily moved into the semi-finals. Later, Beatriz Fernandes and Inês Penetra made history. They qualified for their first-ever final in the C2 500 meters event. Alex Santos also secured a spot in a medal race, competing in the adapted KL1 class.
The federation chief also spoke highly of the K4 500-meter crew. This team includes Teresa Portela, Ana Brito, Ana Rodrigues, and Inês Costa. They only formed in May, yet they’re heading to the ‘B’ final. This race decides places from 10th to 18th. This is impressive, considering they finished 10th at the European Championships in June.
“This is very good, no doubt,” Inês Costa shared with enthusiasm. “This is a very new crew. It truly shows how much we’re improving, especially since the Europeans. We all have busy lives outside of canoeing. So, it’s been a tough and slow journey. But it’s clearly starting to pay off, and we’re so happy.”
Costa added that the tough work makes the progress feel even better. “If it wasn’t so hard, this big step wouldn’t feel as sweet,” she said, thinking about the many training sessions.
Ana Rodrigues added her thoughts on the team’s drive. “Everything comes from good work,” she explained. “This team is new but very ambitious to get better. In the B final, we want to beat some of the countries that beat us at the Europeans. That would be great. It would let us match our 10th-place finish from the Europeans.”
Not every race ended in celebration. Iago Bebiano just missed his final. He was only 0.12 seconds short. He came out of the water for the boat weigh-in, still unsure if he had made it.
“I still had hope,” Bebiano explained. “Sometimes these differences are tiny, and I thought I might have slipped into third. I just knew everyone was very close, the top four. Sadly, I was last of that front group. But I’m still fairly happy with how I did. I gave it my absolute best.”
