Two canoeists who had never competed together in an international competition and an 18-year-old skateboarder in his first Olympics put Australia one gold medal away from the country’s best-ever performance.

The victories on Thursday of paddlers Tom Green and Jean van der Westhuyzen in the K2 1000 metres canoe sprint and of Keegan Palmer in the first Olympic men’s park final lifted Australia’s total to 17 gold medals – equal highest with Athens in 2004.