Evy Leibfarth paddled into Oklahoma City over the weekend and left after making history by qualifying for two more Olympic events.
The 20-year-old from Bryson City became the first American woman to qualify for three paddling events in the Olympics after earning her spot in both kayak slalom and kayak cross, a new event for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Leibfarth finished the kayak slalom in 98.38 seconds at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials on Saturday at Riversport OKC in Oklahoma City. Her performance also secured her eligibility to compete in kayak cross this summer in Paris, meaning she will compete in three events.
“I love going out there and getting to do all of the different classes, because they’re each so different,” Leibfarth told The Oklahoman. “I have a certain feeling that I associate with each, so to know that I’m going to get to have all three of those feelings in Paris is pretty special.”
She earned her Team USA spot in the Olympics by winning the C1 in a time of 114.14 seconds in the canoe slalom during the U.S. Olympic Canoe Trials at Montgomery Whitewater Park in Alabama on April 14. Despite having already punched her ticket, Leibfarth still competed in the canoe slalom at the trials in Oklahoma and finished first.
This is the first year in the Olympics for kayak cross, where multiple paddlers are dropped into the water to race against each other. This marks the first time women’s paddling will have three events, after canoe slalom was added for the Tokyo Olympics.
Leibfarth entered the paddling scene at the age of 15, when she made her first international appearance, but she’s been kayaking on the Nantahala River since she was 4, learning from her father and coach, Lee.
The three-time world champion and two-time Pan American Games gold medalist competed in her first Olympics at the age of 17 in Tokyo, where she earned a 12th-place finish in the women’s kayak slalom, narrowly missing a spot in the final, and finished 18th in the canoe slalom.
Leibfarth’s Olympic journey toward a medal will begin July 26 at the Opening Ceremony, with the parade of athletes held on boats on the Seine. The women’s canoe slalom opens competition July 30 with the semifinals and finals the following day.
Evan Gerike is the high school sports reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times. Email him at egerike@citizentimes.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanGerike. Please support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Evy Leibfarth qualifies for two more paddling events in Paris Olympics
