Rio 2016: Naomi Flood causes upset in K1 500 qualifier and forces race-off with teammate and friend

KAYAKER Naomi Flood has developed a new perspective as she chases Olympic qualification.

Surprise Flood in kayak Olympic qualifiers

NAOMI Flood has called on the mental toughness and grit that allowed her to become one of the youngest ever world ironwoman champions to power back from the edge of disaster and remain in the race for a kayaking spot at the Rio Olympics.

Flood pulled off the upset of the Olympic trials in Perth today when she won her first ever K1 500m race at a national titles to keep alive her quest to race in Rio.

In doing so Flood has forced a race-off with her best mate and K2 500m partner Jo Brigden-Jones on Sunday.

“How hard is that? Going up against your best mate and partner but somehow I just have to maintain the rage,’’ Flood said after her upset victory in the trials race.

“I had everything to lose today so I wasn’t going out without a fight. I was really p’eed off about losing the K2.

“I reckon my days in surf, dealing with the hard knocks, the setbacks, difficult conditions got me through today.’’

Flood said she was shattered after she and Brigden-Jones missed K2 selection on Thursday but news of triple Olympic rower and mother of two Sarah Tait’s death at 33 from cancer had helped put things into perspective for her.

“What do I have to whinge about,’’ said the former world and Australian ironwoman champion who gave up her surf career for one on stillwater.

“We had a fair bit to do with each other at the London Olympics and she was so normal, so nice, so great.

“A great mum and wife. It put things right back into perspective.’’

Sarah Tait (right), who won a silver medal at the London Games in 2012, lost her battle with cancer on Thursday. Pic: Armando Franca/AP

If Brigden-Jones, who won the first K1 500m trial a fortnight ago, wins on Sunday she will be heading to Rio.

If Flood wins, the selection race will be extended and determined by the outcome of the pairs results in upcoming World Cup races.

On Thursday Alyce Burnett and Alyssa Bull defeated Flood and Brigden-Jones to claim two of the three women’s spots available on the Australian team.

Burnett, 23, and Bull, 20, will be completing at their first Olympic Games together.