Lisa Carrington has won a seventh successive women's K1 200m world title with a dominant performance at the ICF Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe World Championships in Hungary.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
The Kiwi destroyed the opposition to finish the race in 39.39 - almost two seconds clear of the silver medallist Marta Walczykiewicz of Poland.
The 30-year-old, who is also a double Olympic K1 200m champion, started a heavy pre-race favourite but shrugged off any pressure or expectation with another scintillating performance.
Quickly establishing control of the race with her characteristic blistering start, Carrington was, remarkably for a sprint race, already more than clear length ahead by half distance.
She then continued to lengthen her advantage on a world-class field to secure gold at the same venue where she won her maiden world K1 200m title eight years ago and ensured New Zealand qualified a boat in this event for next year's Tokyo Olympics.
"It was cool to be back in Szeged eight years on from my first World Championship victory in the K1 200m. I really experienced those similar feelings of excitement and nerves," Carrington said.
"It was very special to come back here and qualify New Zealand a boat for the K1 200m for next year's Olympics. Eight years ago that was all I wanted to do; go the Olympics. So, to still be world champion today and qualify a boat for the Olympics is really special."
Denmark's Emma Jorgensen and Spain's Teresa Portela shared the bronze medal in Szeged.
The race was all about the sheer unerring brilliance of Carrington, who maintained her unbeaten sequence in this event which stretches back seven years.
Carrington later won her semi-final in the women's K1 500m ahead of defending world and Olympic champion Danuta Kozak of Hungary.
Carrington qualified second fastest for tonight's Final behind 2017 world champion Volha Khudzenka of Belarus in what should prove a lip-smacking showdown.
She'll also contest the K4 500 final with Kayla Imrie, Aimee Fisher and Caitlin Ryan.
Twelve months ago at the last World Championships the same quartet banked silver, finishing just 0.01 behind the Hungarian quartet, in a thrilling battle.
In other results, New Zealand's Para canoeist Scott Martlew won a bronze medal in the KL2 200m.
The kiwi crew of Alicia Hoskin and Caitlin Ryan placed ninth in the A Final of the Women's K4 500m.
New Zealand duo Max Brown and Kurtis Imrie finished sixth in their semi-final of the men's K2 1000m to advance to tonight's B Final.
Poverty Bay paddler Quaid Thompson concluded his quest in the men's K1 1000m by placing seventh in the C Final.
