MacDonald posts world times

Press, 23 February 1987, Page 9

MacDonald posts world times

PA Auckland The Olympic champion, Paul MacDonald, posted three world-best times in winning five titles at the national canoeing championships held in the week-end. There are no world records kept in canoeing because of variations in wind and whether a course is fast or slow.

However, the times MacDonald posted — both in winning the • glamour individual events over 1000 m and 500 m and in combination with his friend and rival, lan Ferguson — will leave international canoeists agog. He won the KI 1000 m yesterday in 3min 35.12 s — two seconds faster than a Briton, Jeremy West, recorded in winning last year’s world championships. With Ferguson, MacDonald easily took the K2 1000 m in 3min 17.785, which MacDonald rated as “about equalling” the winning time at the world event.

Yesterday MacDonald comfortably took the KI 500 m in Imin 40.555. West won the

world title in a tick over lmin.4ls last year in what was then a revolutionary time.

With Ferguson in the K2 500 m (the event they won at the Los Angeles Olympics and the 1985 world championships), MacDonald again set a world-best time with Imin 31.97 — four seconds ahead of the time they Set in winning the event last year. MacDonald has adapted to the new "winged” paddle well, the new course at Lake Pupuke was as straight as an arrow, the wind was a slight tail breeze, and he trained hard.

"I told myself I would either stay on the water and give it 100 per cent effort or else get off the water. There have been times when I have trained only 10 minutes because I have been so flattened by what I have been doing. "I have also changed my diet. I have dropped from 14 stone to 13 stone by cutting right down on my fat content. My body fat has just dropped away and has made an amaz-

ing difference; I really feel the cold now;” Results.— f22Men KI 1000: P. MacDonald (North Shore), 3:35.12s 1, N. Bellingham (U.S.) 2,1. Ferguson. 3. KI 1000 triathlon: P. de Rijk (Waitemata), 4:24.1 1, A. Gardner (North Shore) 2, Leigh Hudson (Hauraki) 3. K2 1000: MacDonald/Ferguson, 3:17.78s 1, Eivind Skavhellen/Harald Amundsen (Norway) 2, G. Kenny/S. Wood (Australia) 3. K 4 1000: J. Thompson, B. Clode, S. Richards, E. Richards (North Shore) 3:9.23 1, C. Wallace, S. Edwards, C. Coffin, H. Reid (Poverty Bay)

2, Paul Harper, N. Shaw, L. Beer, A. Gardner (mixed) 3. Masters 5000 m final: Eric Leask (Arawa) 23:51.87 1, M. Robb (North Shore) 2, Hudson 3. KI 500: MacDonald, 1:40.55s 1, Bellingham 2, Ferguson 3. Masters single 500 m: M. Aldiss 1:1.02s 1, Leask 2, J. Leonard 3. K2 500: Ferguson/MacDonald 1:31.97 1, G. Bramwell/Bellingham 2, Kenny/Wood 3. Senior 10,000 m triathlon: Alan Roxburgh (Arawa) 41:42.26 1, Hudson 2, Tom Dooney (Palmerston North) 3. 10,000 KI: P. MacDonald

38:16.18s 1, Bellingham 2, Harald Amundsen (Norway) 3. Woman K2 1000: Wenche Lagraid/’ Kathrine Aschehoug (Norway) 3:59.82s 1, Philippa Pearse/Peggy Lockyer (North Shore) 2, Nathalie Beaurain Castet Laurence (France) 3. KI 1000: Lagraid, 4:32.09 1, Aschehoug 2, Lockyer 3. KI 5000 m; Lagraid, 20:56 1, Aschehoug 2, Lockyer 3. K2 500: Lagraid/Aschehoug, 1:55.64 1, D. Higgison/I Raimann (Switzerland) 2, Pearse/Lockyer 3. KI 500: Lagraid 2:06.25 1, Aschehoug 2, Raimann 3.