The Belarusian team in the final
(BEIJING, August 22) -- The Belarusian team won the Canoe/Kayak Flatwater Kayak Four (K4) 1000 meter final on Friday, August 22.
Led by Athens K2 500m bronze medalists Raman Piatrushenka and Vadzim Makhneu, the team stayed in front of the race from start to end. Along with team members Aliaksei Abalmasau and Artur Litvinchuk, the Belarus paddlers passed the finish line first with a time of 2:55.714 minutes.
This is not only the second gold medal won by Belarus on Friday, but also Belarus' second Canoe/Kayak gold medal in Olympic history. Just 15 minutes earlier, Andrei Bahdanovich and Aliaksandr Bahdanovich made the breakthrough for Belarus by winning the K2 1000m final.
The Slovakia team comprised of Richard Riszdorfer, Michal Riszdorfer, Erik Vlcek and Juraj Tarr trailed 0.879 seconds behind the winners. These four paddlers took a bronze medal in Athens.
The German team made up by Lutz Altepost, Norman Brockl, Torsten Eckbrett and Bjorn Goldschmidt finished third with a time of 2:56.676 minutes. Germany's Men's K4 team took one silver medal each in Sydney and Athens.
Italian legend Antonio Rossi failed to grab a medal with his team, who finished the course fourth. The 39-year-old has won five Olympic medals since 1992, including three gold medals. He was also the flag-bearer of the Italian delegation in the opening ceremony.
Defending champion Hungary only ranked fifth with a time of 2:59.009 minutes, about two seconds slower than its gold-winning time in Athens.
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