Rheinisch can revel in raging waters

This must be a strange morning for Eoin Rheinisch.

Four years on from finishing fourth in the K1 Kayak final at the Beijing Games, the Kildare man is preparing for a day which could potentially end with him battling for an Olympic medal.

So how does he channel the memories of that steamy afternoon of China as he saw bronze agonisingly slip from his grasp? Does it help to have the experience of coming within touching distance of the podium or a hindrance of having to shoulder increased expectations.

He nods: “People obviously say you came fourth at the last one so you should be expecting a medal here. But it’s a very simplified way of viewing it.

“There are a lot of people who were in Beijing and a lot of other new athletes who have come through. Four years is an awful long time. I’m not looking at the other competitors. I’m looking to do my best run. I feel I’m in a good position now to fight for a place in the final.”

Rheinisch takes to the swirling maelstrom of the Lee Valley White Water centre at 1.30pm in a semi-final which features 15 kayakers, including Benjamin Boukpeti of Togo who pipped him for the medal in 2008.

Four years ago, the paddlers would have had two runs over the course in the semi with the aggregate score to count. Today there is only one with the top 10 progressing to the evening’s final. Though competitors are operating on the same course which hosted their opening round on Sunday, with 15 cubic metres of water pumping out every second, the gates have been re-arranged and repositioned.

With the change of format from two runs to one in the semi, it leaves the competitor with a dilemma. Do you play the course conservatively and hope that your opponents pick up penalties or do you approach it like a final and go on the attack? “You can’t be cautious in a semi-final,” Rheinisch reasons.

“With this field, it’s the cream of the crop. I don’t think you can be cautious at all. You need to go for it.”

But the raging waters and gates aren’t the only challenges for competitors. The heaving grandstands of the venue produce a background noise that few of the men have experienced.

“I think it’s a distraction for everyone here because it is every four years that you get to experience a crowd like this. I tend to think of it as an advantage for me because I’ve been at an Olympics a few times. There are very few people there that have been there three times. There are a lot of people at their first Games and I know how that felt in Athens. Then, it was a huge distraction but I was prepared for it this time.”

An incredibly loud running commentary on the public address system doesn’t seem to unsettle him either. “It’s always done. It’s a little bit different this time because Beijing was mostly in Chinese so it was brushing over your head. You do hear it but I think once you’re into the run that’s it.”

London is Rheinisch’s third Olympics. He crashed out in the opening day in Athens, had the final day drama in Beijing and at 32 is one of the more seasoned campaigners.

So where does that leave him ranked in the 15 man field? “Who knows,” he smiles. “We’ll see on Wednesday. I’m just taking it one step at a time.

” Obviously the goal is to get into that final and then you’re in the hunt for the medals. But it will be one step at a time for me.”