Kimberley Woods ‘buzzing’ after kayak bronze as Olympics goes into third day

Kayaker Kimberley Woods has said she is “absolutely buzzing” about her bronze medal, as day three of the Paris Olympics gets under way.

Team GB stars Tom Daley , Tom Pidcock and Max Whitlock will be going for medals in their respective events on Monday, while the eventing team also competes for a place on the platform.

Woods, from Rugby , came third in the women’s kayak single on Sunday, throwing her paddle in joy after securing the bronze.

Her partner, Elliott Woodman, told the PA news agency: “We are all over the moon and so, so proud.”

Woods told BBC Breakfast on Monday morning that she is “absolutely buzzing”.

The 28-year-old was visibly distraught after incurring 56 seconds’ worth of penalties for a bottom finish in her maiden Olympic final three summers ago in Tokyo.

She remembered the moment as “a bit heartbreaking” and recalled her “ugly crying”, but said it helped mentally prepare her for Paris.

“That kind of heartbreak from Tokyo, people were kind of talking about the redemption story and all this before I’d even got to the start line,” she told the programme.

“So I was there, I was ready for it, I just wanted to embrace every gate, every moment, the crowd, everything.

“And I really felt like myself, and I just wanted to go out there and be me and be proud of who I was as a person, but also as a paddler, and go out and really smash it.

“And I did that, and now I have something to show for it.”

Woods will have a further opportunity to secure another medal when she competes in the kayak cross later in the Games.

On Monday, Team GB flagbearer Daley will be going for gold in the men’s synchronised 10m dive alongside teammate Noah Williams.

It would be the second diving medal of the Paris Games for Team GB following a bronze for Scarlett Mew Jensen and Yasmin Harper on Saturday.

In the afternoon, Pidcock will be looking to defend his Olympic crown in the men’s mountain bike cross-country.

The 24-year-old, who won World Championship gold last year, has recovered from a bout of Covid-19 which forced him to withdraw from the Tour De France earlier this month.

Into the evening, three-time Olympic gold medallist Whitlock will compete in the men’s artistic team all-around final, alongside Joe Fraser, Harry Hepworth, Jake Jarman, and Luke Whitehouse.

After qualifying, Whitlock said: “There is just a lot of relief right now, qualifications are always so tough, especially at the Olympics, and everybody was really feeling it, we knew what was at stake.”

The eventing team of Ros Canter, Laura Collett and Tom McEwen will also be fighting for a medal on Monday.