Hemmings nets Beijing berth

2:35pm Friday 11th July 2008

Wimbledon-based canoeist Anna Hemmings has revealed her seven week wait to be confirmed as a member of the Great Britain team bound for the Beijing Olympics has been worth it.

The 31-year-old six-time world champion was named in the squad on Tuesday nearly two months after making the qualifying mark at the European Championships in Italy.

Elmbridge Canoe Club member Hemmings - and partner Jess Walker - finished first in the K2 500m B final in May to make sure Britain had a slot for the corresponding event in China.

She joins Walton-based European champ Tim Brabants - who won on a bronze medal in Sydney eight years ago - on the plane bound for the Far East on August 6.

Brabants, who goes in the indivisual 500m and 1000m races, had his place booked on the first wave of selection on June 18.

Hemmings, who will be competing in her second Olympics, and Walker have been in full training under the assumption they would be picked having been the only pair in contention to take the slot.

But she was still thrilled to have finally got the nod after being made to sweat.

"It has been a long and anxious wait since we raced in Milan, but it has been worth the wait," she said.

"It will be Jess's first Olympic Games and my second. It is the world's most spectacular sporting event and I can't wait."

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