Joe Clarke back in Rio to hunt global glory

The 25-year-old Stafford & Stone slalom canoeist won K1M gold at the Rio 2016 Olympics, but minor team medals are the best he has managed at World and European Championships to date.

Speaking ahead of the September 25 to 30 World Championships on the Rio course where he claimed Olympic gold, Clarke said: “When I set out on this journey I wanted to try to win the Olympics and within that I wanted to try to win the worlds and the Europeans – the trio.

“I’ve done the hardest one and I’m in the fortunate position that the course I won the Olympics on is the course we’re going back to compete on at the worlds.

“It would be huge to win the worlds, another accolade and title to tick off, and then go from there.

“This season’s been fantastic so far and hopefully, like a good musical piece, it’s building to a crescendo at the World Championships.”

The World Championships does not take place in Olympic years and in 2016 Clarke was on top of the world, taking Britain’s second gold of the Rio Games, after swimmer Adam Peaty.

Clarke knows he is capable of ending his pursuit of world gold, but his priority is the next Olympics, less than two years from now.

“Nobody’s ever won two Olympic titles in my category, so that’s the motivation,” he added. “It’s nice to pick up world titles along the way, but the bigger picture is Tokyo and our four-year plan to peak there.”