Australia’s canoe sprint team have qualified all 11 boats in action on the first day of the 2009 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Dartmouth, Canada.

The 500m and 1000m heats were staged on Thursday and the Australian athletes did not disappoint with a number of stand out performances ensuring all crews remain in the regatta.

Australian Institute of Sport dual Olympic medallist Ken Wallace won his heat of the men’s K1 500m — the event he won gold in at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games — and will now paddle in the semifinal of this race as well as the K1 1000m, after placing fifth in the heat.

David Smith and Luke Morrison won heat 4 of the men’s K2 1000m to underline their status as one of the crews that will challenge. In June, Smith and Morrison claimed gold in World Cup 3 and have since continued their good form in Canada.

World championship debutante Jo Brigden-Jones (New South Wales) raced very well claiming second place in both the women’s K1 500m and 1000m and earning semifinal berths in each, while Murray Stewart (New South Wales) and Jacob Clear came third in their heat of the men’s K2 500m.

The women’s K4 500m crew of Alana Nicholls, Lisa Russ, Hannah Davis and Lyndsie Fogarty finished fourth, while the men’s K4 1000m crew of Matt Urquhart, Chad Alston, Chris Alagich and Reece Baker was fifth.

Queenslanders Bernadette Wallace and Andrea Wood claimed seventh in their heat of the women’s K2 1000m, while canoeist Torsten Lachmann qualified in both the C1 500m and 1000m, placing sixth in both heats.

National High Performance Director Richard Fox was pleased with the opening day results.

‘All our crews did what was required today which is a really positive result,’ Fox said. ‘Often on the opening day of a world championship you can get carried away with the moment and bow out of the event but we came here focused and completed the job.’

The semifinals of all 500m and 1000m events will be held on Friday evening, Australian time.