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At one point, Jessica Fox could have been forgiven for thinking she would never win Olympic gold.<\/b><\/p>\n
But the Australian canoeist has now won her past three Olympic finals, rewritten Games history and will bid for an unprecedented treble at Paris 2024 later this week.<\/p>\n
Fox, 30, was born in France and has lit up the canoe slalom on her return, proving a class above her rivals at the spectacular Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday she retained her canoe single (C1) title in style, storming down the course to claim victory by 2.48 seconds ahead of Germany’s faultless Elena Lilik – despite incurring two penalty seconds for making contact with a gate.<\/p>\n
That came just three days after her kayak single (K1) triumph, which ended a long, agonising wait for gold in that event.<\/p>\n
In her first three Olympic finals, Fox missed out on gold by a combined six seconds in an unforgiving sport determined by the finest margins.<\/p>\n
But in Paris, she has made history as the first athlete to win two canoe slalom gold medals at the same Games. Her sixth Olympic podium is unmatched in the sport.<\/p>\n
Fox has also become the most successful athlete in Australian Olympic history with her sixth individual medal, surpassing swimmers Ian Thorpe and Leisel Jones, cyclist Anna Meares and runner Shirley Strickland on an esteemed list.<\/p>\n
“This has been a dream Games,” Fox said.<\/p>\n
“As an athlete, you put in the blood, sweat and tears, and the team invests in you. For it to come down to one day every four years, then to actually pull it off, is the best feeling in the world. <\/p>\n
“It does not always go your way and I have experienced that as well. For it to turn out this way, it has been the perfect Games and so magical to be here in Paris.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n