LONDON 2012: Going for two golds is easier than one, claims Great Britain's David Florence

By Sportsbeat staff

GREAT Britain slalom canoeist David Florence believes going for two golds will be easier than focusing on one at the London 2012 Olympics.

DOUBLE GOAL: David Florence is going for two golds at London 2012 as he seeks to upgrade his silver medal from Beijing

Florence won silver in Beijing four years ago and is seeking an upgrade in the C1 event and will also partner Richard Hounslow in the C2 discipline, in which the pair are reigning European champions.

The 30-year old Scot grew up just a few streets away from cyclist Sir Chris Hoy in Edinburgh and claims watching him strike triple gold in Beijing was the reason he decided to add another event to his repertoire.

"We've basically split our sessions 50/50 between racing in the single and double since we took it up," he said.

"The racing at the Olympics is actually much easier than normal because it's much more spread out. We knew that would be the case four years ago when we started it.

"It's not the first time I've done two events at a major championships but it's still a learning experience.

"I'm pretty good now at refocusing. I've had some races where I've had a massive disappointment in my C1 and had to go on in the C2 and we've come away with a medal.

"Psychologically, it's a boost to know that I am capable of it, but I'm not taking anything lightly at all."

"Olympic selection was probably the toughest race I've had to do in my career. In comparison, this all seems relatively spread out and we'll get plenty of chances to relax between each event."

"Unlike the recent Winter Olympics in Vancouver, where Canadian officials limited visiting teams access to facilities in a bid to gain a home advantage, London organisers have made allowed every nation equal time on the slalom course in Lee Valley.

But Florence has no complaints.

"I think we want it to be a fair competition, you want to win these things fair and square if you win, so why not?" he added.

"I think people have had more opportunities to train here than they ever have before in the history of canoe slalom at an Olympic Games."

© Sportsbeat 2012