It was a thrilling day of K2 crew boat racing at the 2023 ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships with an epic top ten finish for Russell and Shaw.
Rounding off an action packed week of marathon racing, was the Senior Men's K2 race.
It was a field of high caliber athletes as 23 boats lined up to race around the 27.6km course.
Great Britain had two crews in the mix today with Chelmsford's Matt Johnson and Alex McIntyre, plus James Russell was also back in action teaming up with Luke Shaw of Norwich.
Both crews were swift off the start line and gained good positions in the back of the lead group.
This was maintained around lap one, however Russell and Shaw dropped back to lead the chase group at the start of lap 2.
Johnson and McIntyre clung to the back of the leading group around lap two, but as the pace quickened coming into the first portage they fell behind and joined fellow Brits in the chase group.
As the lead group arrived into the first portage the Danish boat of Knudsen and Maretti took a plunge on the get out. Johnson and McIntyre came into the portage whilst the Danish boat were trying to recover, and in the heat of racing caused an obstruction for the Danes that landed them with an unfortunate 30 second penalty.
In lap three both British crews settled into a chase group of four, putting in a huge effort in an attempt to catch the leaders.
Russell and Shaw got away well after the second portage hunting down the leaders. However it was heartbreak for the Chelmsford duo as they stopped to take their penalty.
It was a huge effort for Johnson and McIntyre around the next lap, and on the get in of the fourth portage they joined the Spanish and Danish crews as a chase trio. A hard graft saw them rejoin the chase group ahead.
The race shifted in lap six as the gap between the chasers and the leaders was bridged.
The 2022 K2 World Champions, Pimenta and Ramahlo of Portugal put down another burn in an attempt to split the group but Russell and Shaw made it stick and continued on with the lead group.
The pace slowed going into lap seven and the Chelmsford and Norwich team secured a solid place the lead side wash.
Matt and Alex endeavoured solo behind the large lead group, grinding hard to gain contact.
James and Luke stay with the leaders until the final small lap as the group starts to thin out towards the finish line.
An impressive top ten for Russell and Shaw on the world stage as they cross the finish line in 9th place with a time of 1:55:16.
It was 13th for Johnson and McIntyre with a time of 1:57:23.
The Junior Men's K2 were also in action out in Denmark today. They were first on the water at the idyllic Jels Lake.
It was a packed start line and carnage ensued within the first 100m with multiple crews taking a dip.
Unfortunately the Brits William Short and James Ross (Elmbridge) were amongst them with a fall at the start of their race.
Despite a rocky start, the duo showed their commitment to finishing their international racing debut race and continued to graft around the 21km course.
They crossed the line in a commendable 20th place with a time of 1:41:22.
That concludes the racing for the 2023 ICF Canoe Marathon World Championships.
You can find the full results from the weekend online here.