Jess Fox has barely stopped moving since pocketing a couple more gold medals in Paris last year.
The most decorated paddler in Olympic history strutted down a catwalk under the Sydney Harbour Bridge, presented the sport on morning television, and has smiled broadly in dozens of photo shoots, TV spots, award shows, speeches and interviews. And that’s out of water.
With her boat, you’ll have found Fox on her socials catching tubes at Urbnsurf or paddling on the Yarra in Melbourne, squeezing in training between spots as a colour reporter for Nine at the Australian Open tennis.
“It’s been amazing and hectic and a whirlwind,” Fox said “I’ve been enjoying different opportunities and challenges and trying my hand at different things and then getting back into training.”
After finally finishing her season in September with even more World Cups wins in Spain, Fox returned home. But there would be no summer holiday.
Competing in a sport that usually struggles to grab attention and sponsorship dollars, Fox parked the idea of a beach break and used the sunshine to make hay instead. Over the next two months, she didn’t have a day off.
Back in the water: Jess Fox in training at the Penrith Whitewater Stadium.Credit: Nick Moir
“Christmas Day was great. I had a day off,” Fox laughed.
“Definitely November, December, I probably got very close to burnout. I went on a lot of flights. I was travelling interstate a lot for different things. So I really enjoyed winding down over Christmas and recharging, and now it’s a new year and new challenges and it’s exciting to be back on the start line.”
The start line will be at Fox’s home course this week at the Penrith Whitewater Stadium course, where she and her gold-medallist sister Noemie train.
The Foxes and their boats will be back in competitive action at the Oceania Championships, which are an important step towards the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships at the Olympic venue later in the year.
Jess Fox joins her sister Noemie celebrating a gold medal win in the kayak cross at the Paris Games.Credit: AP
Under the guidance of mum and coach Myriam, the Foxes were hard at work in training on Thursday morning, along with the rest of Australia’s elite paddlers, and an international contingent featuring eight Olympic medallists.
Jess Fox isn’t quite sure what sort of condition she’ll be in, but she is confident she’s squeezed in enough work – even if it was paddling up and down the flat and murky Yarra.
“If you have six months off, it’s really hard getting back in the boat,” Fox said.
Having finally won the elusive kayak slalom gold in Paris, to go with her two canoe golds, there isn’t much left for Fox to achieve. Motivation would, presumably, get a little harder to find.
But Fox says she still believes she still has untapped potential, and the chance to win a gold at a home World Championships in October was perfectly timed in the year after an Olympics.
The Penrith whitewater centre is, quite literally, home turf. The inner section of the course was re-named “Fox Island” last year, and its very existence can be traced back to lobbying of her father Richard, who helped convince the NSW government to build the venue ahead of the 2000 Sydney Olympics – and the Foxes then moved from France to Penrith in 1998.
Fox said watching the last World Championships in Penrith in 2005 as a 10-year-old helped inspire her to become an Olympian.
“It’s the perfect way to stay motivated post-Games and also to kickstart the new Olympiad,” she said.
Jess and Noemie Fox after training at the Penrith Whitewater Stadium.Credit: Nick Moir
Post-Olympic life has been as equally hectic for Noemie Fox, who became one of the stories of the Games when she won gold in the Kayak Cross.
It not only saw her escape the considerable shadow of her older sister, but share plenty of golden spotlight, too.
The pair were joint winners of “The Don” award last year and though she snuck in a holiday, Noemie has been also been enjoying photoshoots, VIP invites and public appearances, too.
Getting asked for late-night selfies in the supermarket has taken a bit of adjustment, and so too have Noemie’s career goals after a sudden rise from being a regular Australian competitor on the world circuit to Olympic champion. Noemie is now another Fox being hunted.
“When you win gold, naturally, once you prove your potential to yourself and to your whole entourage, your expectations are met and validated,” Noemie said.
“And so you lift the bar a little bit higher as well. For me, my goals are to medal at the world championships here and to keep proving that I am in the top three worldwide.”
Has it been good to finally have sisterly bragging rights in one paddling discipline?
“It’s definitely what I’ve been missing my whole career – being the number one boat in Australia,” Noemie grinned.
“I have to say … it’s definitely been nice.”
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