New Zealand Take First Women's Canoe Gold

Gold medallist New Zealand's Lisa Carrington poses after the victory ceremony for the women's kayak single (K1) 200m final at the Eton Dorney during the London 2012 Olympic Games August 11, 2012. (Photo : REUTERS/Jim Young)

New Zealand's Lisa Carrington stormed through the field to take victory in the inaugural K1 200 on Dorney Lake on Saturday to add to her world championship title and give her country its first women's Olympic gold medal in sprint canoeing.

The result consigned Hungarian great Natasa Douchev-Janics to a bronze medal after she won a silver earlier in the week. She had been in the hunt for her fourth Olympic gold medal overall.

Like Us on Facebook

The explosive sprint over 200 meters is new to the Olympic program and designed to increase interest in the sport, with the canoeists taking three strokes per second in an explosive fight for the line.

Ukraine's Inna Osypenko-Radomska, Olympic champion from 2008 over the 500-metre distance and silver medalist from earlier this week, took another silver.