PARIS -- A melodic chorus of encouraging cheers and whistles echoed its way down the Vaires-sur-Marne rapids as Jess Fox was introduced over the staticky complex megaphone, first in English, then French, ahead of her highly anticipated run in the women's K1 final.
Australia's Olympic flag bearer and superstar canoeist sat alone at the top of the course; a steely look of determination plastered onto her face. Fox closed her eyes for a brief moment, opened and re-adjusted to the glorious Paris summer sunshine. She then gripped her paddle tightly with both hands, readying herself to take care of some unfinished business.
An uncharacteristically lacklustre run in the semifinal earlier in the afternoon meant Fox would be the fifth paddler to plunge into the white water, leaving seven others to follow. But from the moment she crossed the finish line of the 200m course and pumped her fists in jubilation, those remaining competitors knew they were only fighting each other for silver.
Fox didn't just win Sunday's final; she obliterated the competition. Her time of 96.08s had her in a league of her own, and one by one those frivolous attempts to usurp her from the provisional gold medal fell short. The closest anyone came was Poland's Klaudia Zwolinska, who finished her run in 97.53s. Great Britain's Kimberley Woods took bronze with a time of 98.94s. Nobody else dipped below the 100-second mark.
"It was just the perfect day for me," said an emotional Fox, moments after sharing a warm embrace with Australian chef de mission, Anna Meares. "It didn't start well, but it finished really well. It was just magical. I knew it was a good run [but] I was so nervous watching that I just had my fingers crossed and tried to pray and do everything I could to just stay calm."
For Fox, her Paris triumph in the K1 -- her second career Olympic gold medal -- was a tale of redemption.
It was three years ago in Tokyo where Fox, universally viewed as the best individual paddler in the world, was left devastated after narrowly missing out on gold in this very race.
She had entered the final as a raging favourite but came unstuck with four seconds worth of time penalties for clipping a pair of gates. Her time of 102.73 seconds would have been good enough for gold, but those penalties demoted her to third place. It was the most heartbreaking moment of her career and Fox would later reveal she bawled her eyes out in a taxi on the way back to the Olympic village.
Fox would get some retribution three days later by prevailing in the C1 to finally capture an Olympic gold medal. To that point, it would be the crowning achievement in a storied career that now boasts 10 individual world championship titles, 51 individual World Cup victories, as well as, easily, the most weeks as the No. 1-ranked canoeist on the planet. But missing out on Olympic gold in the traditional K1 event still stung. In fact, it was really the only accolade missing from her otherwise flawless resume, and she wasn't about to let this opportunity slip away.
Despite her legacy hanging in the balance, there was an ease at which Fox effortlessly glided between each gate as she began her run in Paris. Never panicked, nor rushed, but almost always perfectly positioned for the next obstacle, Fox's calm approach to the course was a stark contrast to many of her rivals that were humbled by these gnarly Parisian white waters either side of her golden run.
It was faultless. Clinical. And above all, it laid to rest any doubt over her ability to perform at her punishing best on the grandest stage, something that had been cruelly hanging over her head since that failure in Tokyo.
"I was last to start in Tokyo, so part of me was like, this is good, it's different to Tokyo, that's a good sign," Fox told reporters after securing gold. "It just means that you've got to come out and you've got to be the attacker and set the bar for everyone else to chase.
"It's been years and years of chasing this dream, of getting really close, of persevering and picking myself back up. A lot of teamwork and love and gratitude for everyone who's helped me to get here."
The questions that will now inevitably begin to be asked are that of her Australian sporting legacy.
Over the next week in Paris, Fox will have the opportunity to establish herself as one of the nation's all-time Olympic icons. She will look to defend her C1 title Wednesday before starting second favourite for a new event, kayak cross, next weekend.
Should she pull off the sweep, she would become the first Australian to win three individual gold medals at a single Games. She would also join legendary sprinter Betty Cuthbert as the only non-swimmer from Australia with four Olympic gold medals. And after her sublime performance Sunday to tick off the K1, you wouldn't want to bet against her adding the other two.