Marietta Canoeist Paddles Toward Olympic Qualification

Having qualified a full allotment of slalom boats for the London 2012 Olympic Games, U.S.A. canoe and kayak athletes will now take to the rapids this weekend in hopes of filling the five Olympic boat slots and fulfilling their dreams.

Jeff Larimer, of Marietta, and Eric Hurd, of Woodstock, earned the C-2 slot by placing first .

Hurd and Larimer are both following in the wake of their paddling fathers, Mike Hurd and Mike Larimer. The elder Hurd and Larimer trained with each other on the Chattahoochee River.

Mike Hurd was also a high school All-American basketball player. Mike Larimer narrowly missed out on competing at the 1992 Olympic Games, but he was able to coach Team USA at the Atlanta 1996 Olympics.

Surprisingly, their sons have only recently joined forces in doubles canoe. But the duo quickly established themselves as the best C-2 boat in North and South America .

“It feels good to qualify the Olympic spot for the U.S. It was a full team effort, and it’s good to know that USA will be represented in C2 at London," Jeff Larimer said in a release.

The 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Whitewater Slalom at the U.S. National Whitewater Center (USNWC) in Charlotte, N.C., April 12 through 14, marks the third of four selection events for accumulating points toward Olympic selection.

Two runs for each event will take place each day from 3 to 7 p.m. Out of a possible six runs, an athlete's best four runs are used for ranking purposes.

The final day of Trials will be streamed live at UniversalSports.com.

Slalom events included in the Olympic program are men's C-1 and C-2 and women and men's K-1. The top three finishers from these events and the non-Olympic women's C-1 will represent the National Team and continue on to compete at World Cup No. 1 in Cardiff, UK, June 8 through 12.

April 18 marks the official 100 Days Out date from the Opening Ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympic Games, July 27-Aug. 12. 

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