Tom Green jokes that he'd love to knock Kenny Wallace of his kayaking perch after finally cracking a three-year puzzle ahead of his Paris Olympics defence.
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Green and Jean van der Westhuyzen, who moved from South Africa in 2018, dominated the K2 1000m at Tokyo's 2021 Games to become the country's first champions in the event.
It was then abruptly ripped from the Olympic schedule, the distance halved for Paris in a head-scratching moment for the 25-year-old.
"My initial thoughts were like, 'why the change?'," Green told reporters from their Hungary training base ahead of next month's French campaign.
"It was exciting coming off the result we had, but Jean and I did then think we were both better at that 500m extended sprint, because we felt good in K1 over that distance.
"We just had to figure out how to do it together well."
He says that took nearly three years, things finally clicking for the duo when they won May's world championships.
"It's gone from a more finesse and rhythm-based event to basically a dash," Green explained.
"The run of the boat is completely different and it took us quite a bit to come to terms with the different style of race.
"Probably three years it took us to get out a proper race and try and tick some boxes."
Gold for the pair would make them Australia's first two-time Olympic champions in canoe or kayak sprint events, edging ahead of Clint Robertson and Wallace.
Robinson won gold and bronze in the K1 1000m, an event Green will also contest, as well as silver in the K2 500m.
Wallace won the K1 500m and K1 1000m as the same 2008 Games before collecting a K2 1000m bronze in his fourth Olympics to draw level with Robinson.
He will be in Paris, as he was in Tokyo, as an Australian deputy chef de mission.
"It'd be an honour, not to just knock Kenny off his little podium," Green smiled.
"But to decorate what a lot of these guys have put into me, even Woody and Riz (soon-to-be three-time Olympians Alyce Wood and Riley Fitzsimmons) over the years.
"Everything they've taught me; it would be a privilege to do that and Jean and I are doing everything we can."
Australia's 11-strong sprint canoe team features world championship silver medal-winning K4 500m men's team
Van der Westhuyzen's brother Pierre will paddle in that quartet, the brothers Australia's first in canoe sprint to compete at the same Olympics since John and Robert Doak in 1984.
Australian Associated Press
