By Kris Shannon in Paris
Luuka Jones will long be thinking about the “silly mistake” that likely ended her Olympic career.
A silver medalist eight years ago in Rio, Jones had been on course to return to the podium in her fifth Games, before that dream was cruelly dashed.
The 35-year-old appeared one of the form paddlers in the kayak cross, an event introduced to the Olympics just as Jones crept near the end of her career.
But with a place in the gold medal race within her grasp, the Kiwi was penalised for missing the fifth gate in the semifinal, rendering void her apparent victory and ruining a potential fairy-tale ending.
“I’m still kicking myself for that,” Jones said. “It was a silly mistake that led to a really big error, and I’ll be thinking about it for a long time. I’ll be thinking about the what-ifs.
“You really have to be going for it if you want to be making it through the rounds - you have to finish in the top two and I was in third position and trying to make up some positions. So I went for it.
“I’ve dreamt of standing on that Olympic podium for a long time and to not ever have that chance again, it hurts.”
The pain is two-pronged.
Jones’ fast starts serve her especially well in the multi-paddler kayak cross, included for the first time alongside the individual format in which she collected silver. Had it been on the programme before Jones made her debut in 2008, she would have enjoyed four more shots at another medal.
And as that last statement of lament hinted, a sixth Games now seemed an eternity away, certainly too far to contemplate.
“Most likely,” Jones said about this being an Olympic farewell. “It’s a long four years to the next Games and I have other things that I’d like to pursue in my life - to spend more time with my fiancé and my family.
“I have to be proud of what I’ve done and to have paved the way for other athletes. It’s always been a goal for me, and Finn [Butcher] is an example.”
If Los Angeles loomed beyond the horizon, Jones soon caught a much closer look at the end of the trail she had blazed for Butcher.
As she was speaking to New Zealand media at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium, the men’s kayak cross final began and the chat paused to monitor his progress on a nearby big screen.
The tears that had been threatening following her own exit duly arrived as Butcher stormed to the line, Jones’ individual disappointment immediately replaced by pride in her teammate.
“Holy shit,” she said. “It’s huge for New Zealand. It’s a European sport and we do really big things on the world stage. To be winning another medal today, it’s amazing.”
Butcher later expressed his own amazement about the achievements of Jones, for so long the lone Kiwi presence at the highest levels of canoe slalom.
“Five Games, it’s insane” Butcher said, medal around his neck. “She’s been the gold standard of preparation, of executing when it matters, for a long time. For us to follow in her footsteps is pretty special.
“As much as we celebrate me winning this, she’s got to be celebrated for all she’s done in the sport. There’s a lot of people that helped build it, but her performance in Rio and since then has put us on the map in New Zealand and around the world as well. We’re pretty thankful for all she’s done.”
The Tauranga youngster has a sweet plan for his prize money.