A full house of U23 Brits will contest their individual semi-finals after a successful second day at the Jnr & U23 slalom World Championships in Liptovsky, Slovakia.
Eleven of the team were in action off the back of the teams finals yesterday.
After winning a silver in the teams, the U23 men's kayak trio of Jonny Dickson (CR Cats), Sam Leaver (Edinburgh Schools) and Ben Haylett (Holme Pierrepont) all eased through the heats, finishing within the top 15.
Two-time U23 World medallist Dickson was the standout performer as he finished second to progress comfortably through to Friday's semi-finals.
Wearing bib 3, he went off in search of 74.86 set by French athlete Leo Vuitton and Dickson was half a second up on the first split.
Keeping his run clean throughout, Vuitton had gone quicker in the backend of the course, but Dickson was impressive on the Liptovsky course to power home in 75.31 and easily through to Friday.
In his last season as an U23, Dickson said:
“That's probably my best qualification performance and result. It felt like a straightforward course today. I usually feel more comfortable on a difficult course but I felt I'd done a great job there.
“I was keen to get off to a good start. We won silver in the team event yesterday which is nice. Great heats run and just half a second behind the current World Champion so no complaints.
“The top guys are senior medallists so it's not going to be easy but I know I've got it in me to deliver. I've medalled silver and bronze previously so I would love to add a gold to it but I've got to get to the final first.
“I've never actually raced on this side of the channel before. It's pretty rare to be discovering new courses at 22 but I'm really enjoying it.”
Leaver was also impressive in his first World Championships as an U23 canoe slalom competitor, having raced kayak cross last season.
Like Dickson, he kept his run clean and was instantly through to the semi-finals as he posted 78.45, ultimately finishing in sixth place.
Haylett made it three from three on the first attempt.
His pace was clearly there on the course as the Holme Pierrepont athlete absorbed his two gate touches to come home in 80.70 which included an additional four seconds.
Lois Leaver (Edinburgh Schools) brought her senior circuit form to the U23 women's kayak heats to finish fourth and progress safely through to Friday's semi-finals.
A finalist at the Krakow World Cup last month, Leaver went quickest at the first split, before keeping the remainder of the run clean to post 86.51, less than a second off top spot.
Pleased with her heat, Leaver said:
“Fourth is great!
“I was a bit more nervous on the start than I expected to be. Once I got going and into the run, I felt like I was attacking it, really precise and sticking to my plan.
“The senior experience has definitely benefited me. I had lots of time to get to grips with the course, and what I learnt from the senior World Cups has benefited me here.
“Being able to put down a good run the first time round builds confidence. Going into the semi-finals will give me chance to observe other athletes before my turn.”
Macy Kang (Holme Pierrepont) and Ellis Miller (Lee Valley) required second runs to book their places in the next round.
After flipping her boat midway through her first run, Kang more than made amends on the next attempt, delivering a great run of 94.93, including four seconds of penalties, to progress in third.
Needing to finish top ten, Miller too delivered a run strong enough to qualify as she posted 101.90 which included a late touch on 17.
With senior finals to her name from the last few years, Miller was back on course in the afternoon to secure her semi-final place in the women's canoe.
The sole Brit to make it through on first attempt, the Lee Valley athlete kept her run clean and eased through the top 20 in 11th place at 96.36.
Racing at World Championships for the first time as U23s, Joanna Blythe-Shields (Independent) and Rachel Ellis (Lee Valley) both progressed on the second attempt with touches taking them out the running initially.
Ellis improved on her first run with a time of 107.87 to finish seventh, whilst Blythe-Shields finished a place behind in 108.48, both easing through in the top 10 that was required.
2023 U23 World silver medallist Kurts Adams Rozentals (Stafford and Stone) headlined the U23 men's canoe heats.
Looking assured in his run, Rozentals was clean on the Liptovsky course to post an 84.30 and go through to semi-finals as he goes in search of another international medal.
Clubmate Luc Royle and Ed McDonald (Holme Pierrepont) ensured all twelve Brits would be back from the next round as they delivered on the second run.
The duo were both error free in terms of gate penalties, with Royle going down in 87.33 to place fifth, whilst McDonald finished eighth in 88.86 to progress.