Jessica Fox

There aren’t many athletes who can lay claim to being the greatest of all time in their sport.

If she weren’t so humble, Jess Fox could do just that. 

The most successful paddler (male or female) in history, Fox underlined her greatness when she won double gold at the Paris 2024 Olympics Games in K1 and C1.

She also won the heart of a nation. Fox, as the headlines have declared, is “Australia’s Golden Girl”.

The well-spoken, Sydney-based young-gun, who has an elite paddling pedigree, has been representing Australia since 2009 in canoe (C1) and kayaking (K1) singles.

Since then, Jess has achieved a level of acclaim most athletes could only dream of.

Her list of achievements is long and includes 3 Olympic gold medals (6 medals in total across 4 Olympics), 52 World Cup gold medals and 10 World Championship titles.

Born in Marseille, France, Jess moved to Australia with her family at the age of four.

Jess’ mother, Myriam Fox-Jerusalmi, raced for France and won a K1 bronze medal in the Atlanta 1996 Olympics. Her father, Richard Fox, raced for Great Britain and was a five-time K1 World Champion. It was through her parents that Jess discovered her love and passion for kayaking.

Coached by her mum from the very beginning, Jess made her first national junior team in 2009 and went on to win four junior World Champion crowns, eight under-23 world titles and a Youth Olympics Gold medal.

In 2011 Jess juggled her sporting commitments while finishing her Higher School Certificate. She placed first in the state for Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE), achieved band 6 in all her subjects and finished with an ATAR of 99.1. She was dux of Blaxland High School.

When she was 18, Jess competed at the London 2012 Olympics winning a silver medal in K1.

In 2014 Jess returned to the Youth Olympic Games as a Young Ambassador for Australia, mentoring a team of 100 young athletes. She has since been involved as a contributor to the YOG and IOC movement at various forums and meetings in Switzerland.

In 2016, Jess represented Australia at the Rio Olympic Games winning a bronze in K1, her second Olympic medal.

The year 2018 was a momentous one for Jess. She claimed two world titles, eight World Cup gold medals and she was the first person to go through an entire paddling World Cup season undefeated in the C1 event. All this and Jess managed to also complete her Bachelor’s degree in Social Science Psychology.

Jess was awarded 2018 Sportswoman of the Year at the World Paddle Awards.

The 2019 season saw Jess continue to dominate the sport, winning gold in the C1 category at the Australian Open, as well taking out the overall World Cup series crown for both C1 and K1 events.

At the Tokyo Olympics, Jess went into the K1 final as the hot favourite and fastest qualifier. However, despite having the quickest time in the final, two time penalties saw her relegated to the bronze medal. Her nine-year hunt for gold continued.

On the afternoon of Thursday, 29 July 2021, the entire nation watched on with bated breath as Jess lined up in the final of the C1 Canoe Slalom.

Fox qualified first for the final, recording a time of 110.59 seconds. An hour later, she would be the last canoeist out at the course. She waited and watched. When Britain’s Mallory Franklin recorded a lightning-fast time of 108.68, Fox’s hopes were dented. But when her turn finally came, the steely expression on her face said it all.

Without incurring a single time penalty, Fox delivered a master class with a technically perfect run and finished three seconds clear to grab a historic C1 gold, in what has been described as one of Australia’s greatest-ever Olympic performances.

Jess’ 2024 Paris Olympics campaign was one for the history books.

Chosen as the Australian flag bearer for the Opening Ceremony, Jess led the Australian team down the Seine River in a honour she described as the greatest moment of her life.

Two days later Jess would go on to produce the definitive performance of her career, superseding the opening ceremony highlight with a masterful moment that coronated her status as an Australian great.

With pace and poise, Jess plotted the perfect course in the K1 final to claim the gold medal in a time of 96.08 seconds that had proven elusive for two generations of her family in five prior Olympics.

 Jess then continued onto the Cl event where she cemented her ‘Goat’ status, securing Olympic gold in the canoe event for the second time in her career.

But that wasn’t the end of a successful games for Jess. She was one of four athletes globally  elected to serve as a member of the International Olympic Committee (IC) Athletes Commission for the next 8 years. The role will see Jess continue to be a voice for her fellow athletes around the globe up to the Brisbane 2032 Olympics.