Mark de Jonge aims to fulfil dream of Olympic gold at Rio

By Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press

Mark de Jonge's mind never really stops racing.

A civil engineer by trade, the Canadian kayaker won bronze at the 2012 Olympics in the 200-metre singles event — known as the K-1 — and is the two-time defending world champion in the sprint distance.

De Jonge is always thinking and tinkering, whether it's with equipment or the mechanics of his stroke, as he looks for any edge in trying to fulfil his dream of winning gold at the Rio Summer Games.

"I've been really involved in the sports science that's helped me become a world champion and hopefully an Olympic champion," the 32-year-old said in an interview from Halifax.

De Jonge has applied his abilities away from the water with the goal of training better and smarter, stating on his personal website: "I am the most informed athlete in my sport on the physics of paddling."

"Just working with my own team and bringing my own engineering skills to the table has really helped a lot," the Dalhousie University graduate said. "Having that application of engineering to sport has been really great for me."

Scott Logan, the sprint high performance director at Canoe Kayak Canada, said de Jonge's need to fiddle and question common practices helps him relax.

"He's an intellectual guy and he needs to keep his brain active," said Logan. "He's always finding little projects, whether it's to distract him or to keep him busy or keep him occupied. Otherwise you're just: 'Eat, sleep, train, eat, sleep, train.' It can be quite monotonous. In that dead time you can be thinking about all the wrong things — doubt and all that sort of stuff.

"If you can occupy your brain with other things ... that just keeps him as a mature, involved person in the whole process. A lot of other athletes need to be told."

Failed attempts

One of the favourites in the 200 metres in Brazil, de Jonge concedes there isn't a lot he can change on the technical side because of strict regulations for competition, but agrees it gives him peace of mind knowing that no stone is left unturned.

"I've looked at a lot of different parameters around my paddle and boat," said de Jonge, who also won gold at last summer's Pan Am Games in Toronto. "I'm more or less matching up what is already out there to how I paddle and just making sure everything is working properly. There are a few different boats and a few different paddles.

"You can configure those things just the way that you need to for each athlete."

After failed attempts to qualify for the Olympics in 2004 and 2008 at longer distances, de Jonge worked full-time for three years with an engineering firm before taking a leave of absence to focus on making the 2012 Games when the 200 metres was added to the program.

'Natural for it' 

That's when his career took off.

De Jonge captured his first World Cup medal in 2011 and then overcame a finger injury to secure the final spot on the Canadian team for London on the way to winning that Olympic bronze.

He then grabbed silver at the 2013 worlds before back-to-back gold-medal performances in 2014 and '15.

"He's kind of predisposed to this," Logan said of the five-foot-nine, 200-pound de Jonge. "He toiled for years as a 1,000-metre athlete in the kayak program and never broke through. Then all of a sudden when the 200-metre came onto the program he was a natural for it."

A relative unknown heading into the 2012 Olympics, de Jonge said the increased interest and attention ahead of Rio has forced him to prioritize only what will get him to the top of the podium.

And the fact his races don't start until Aug. 19, just two days before the closing ceremonies, means he will have to continue finding ways to stay busy.

"It's a bigger year than when I was in London," said de Jonge. "My own preparation is helping in the lead-up, but it's easy to get carried away with the excitement."