PROMISING Worcester kayaker Will Bird swept aside the rest of the field to take gold at the Junior Kayaking World Cup event in Slovenia.
The Worcester College of Technology student won the K2 (two-man event) 200 metres in just 33.42 seconds with his Great Britain team-mate Jack Childerstone.
The 18-year-old, who has also been selected to compete in the upcoming European Championships in Paris, said he was delighted to come out on top and he believed it was another stepping stone to becoming a professional kayaker.
“This is my first medal in a European competition,” he said.
“Me and my team-mate didn’t think we’d get anywhere near to first place as we actually thought we came seventh, so we were really happy when we found out we actually won.”
Bird added: “After completing my course at the college, I’ll hopefully be going to train at Eton Dorney College, which will mean I can train with Ed McKeever, who is an Olympic gold medallist in kayaking.
“Ideally I’d love to become a professional paddler.”
