By the end of March I arrived back home after my four months Australia trip. It was nice to see my friends and family again, but on the other hand it was hard to say goodbye to so many nice and helpful people Down-Under. Especially because this four months felt like four weeks. It was definitely worth it to go there for such a long time. The training in such a great environment and tough training partners were a huge advantage for me and I enjoyed and tried to give my best every day.
After five days being home I already packed my stuff together again. This time for a training camp in Italy with the National team. Day by day I adapted better to the time difference and the colder temperatures. After another five days there it was time for doing my first Regatta in Europe this season. In Mantova (ITA) there was a huge competition with almost 1400 athletes from 10 countries. I wanted to prove my progress I did the last months there. With winning Heat and Semifinal without going to my limit I felt very comfortable and ready for the finals on Sunday. I felt good on that day and started probably stronger than ever before. I was leading all the race, but my power disappeared for the last meters and the finish line seemed to go further away than getting closer. In the end Jost Zakrajsek from Slovenia was able to push his fore first over the line. I got second by 11 hundreds of a second. Actually a quite annoying margin in the first moment, but with a few days of distance I am happy with the weekend. I raced better than ever at this time of year. That is also needed because in four weeks the European Olympic Trials will be held in Duisburg (GER). There are two tickets left for the 1000m Kayak Men and many more guys who are asking for one of those!
Results:
K1 1000m
- Jost Zakrajsek SLO 3:39.34
- Fabio Wyss (SUI) 3:39.45
- Alberto Ricchetti ITA 3:41.50
