SPRINT kayak star Deborah Kerr says the task facing her is simple - ‘get fitter, stronger and faster’ to compete for Olympic medals.

Motherwell’s Kerr finished seventh in her K1 500m semi-final in Tokyo and could reflect on an excellent regatta having also made the medal final in the K1 200m.

But the big win for the 23-year-old was the learning she took from doubling up at the Games and the motivation to suffer through a winter training block.

“I look at the way some of the other girls are racing and they look so much fresher than me,” said Kerr, who is able to train full time and benefit from world class facilities, technology, coaching and support teams thanks to National Lottery funding – which has never been more important in getting her to the start line after a turbulent year. 

“I think it just comes with learning how to approach these regattas. At the World Cup earlier this year, I did four days of racing and by the end I was really, really struggling and that's what led me to being in a B final.

“A little bit of extra rest might have done me the world of good.

“To be honest, it's just about me getting fitter, stronger and faster. It's about working hard and it's going to be a horrible winter. I can already tell you that. 

“I'm still happy and I'm proud of myself for everything I’ve done here.” 
Kerr has taken on a gruelling schedule of seven Olympic races in four days and couldn’t keep pace with a competitive semi-final field on Sea Forest Waterway.

Kerr, who won her first senior International medal with World Cup bronze earlier in 2021, trailed by three seconds at the halfway stage and couldn’t produce a late burst.

She finished in a time of 1:55.955, which was 1.42 seconds behind sixth place which would have seen her through to the C final.

“It's so tight, all of the racing, and I was a bit off the pace today,” she said.

“Some of the girls who have made the B final you'd expect to see in the A final of a World Championships.

“You add in that extra person from each country and it opens up the field so much.”

Kerr has her peak years ahead of her and with a shortened three-year run in to Paris 2024, will have a different focus at what she hopes will be a second Games.

Changes in the canoe sprint programme for the Games mean that the K1 200m will no longer be raced.

Despite the chance to pour her focus into a single boat, Kerr revealed her ambition to compete in four-person or two-person categories on the big stage.

“Getting into the A final for the 200m was such a bonus,” she said  

“The two events really are a different beast, so to be able to put all of my eggs in one basket will mean I can get some great training in.

“The training I’ll be doing will hopefully be valuable for the K4s and the K2s too. I’m excited and the only way is up from here.”

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