The incredible virtual reality technology preparing Jess Fox for Gold at the Paris Games

Jess Fox is giving herself every chance to win back-to-back Olympic Gold medals, travelling with a GoPro in her mouth to create a perfect virtual reality simulation of the Paris course.

When Jess Fox powered her boat down the Olympic whitewater course with a GoPro camera in her mouth it wasn’t to create a new reel on her Instagram account and her 152,000 followers.

The unique vision has been used to build a virtual reality replica of the Canoe Slalom course at the Nautical Stadium of Vaires-sur-Marne in Paris.

This is a prime example of tech and sport converging and the extreme lengths Fox is willing to go to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals.

With the help of Paddle Australia’s head of performance support and innovation Dr Mark Osborne and a team of scientists at the Australian Institute of Sport, Fox now has the Paris 2024 Olympic course on loop if she chooses.

Without even being on the course, Fox can practise her run hundreds of times between now and the Games thanks to virtual reality.

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion has already conquered Paris’ whitewater course on plenty of occasions - including last October, when she won the World Cup final canoe and kayak titles at the Olympic test event.

Will Jess Fox win another gold? Picture: Supplied

Creating the VR experience for Fox that includes incorporating crowd noise and also using the latest in 3D printing technology to make custom parts for her boat is all about finding that extra competitive edge.

“This is getting athletes ready to compete,” said Osborne, whose work with the Olympic and Paralympic athletes along with staff from the AIS has ranged from video analysis to scanning of athletes’ bodies for 3D printing and the use of VR goggles in training.

“(To build the VR experience), we’ve got some footage of the environment, we’ve got audio of French crowds and French loud speakers so that Jess can basically do a bit of a dress rehearsal.

“With the imagery, she can see herself travelling up the conveyor belt prior to a final and paddling around the top lake and going into the gate and also all sorts of things.

“We’ve had Jess carry GoPros down courses in her mouth to try and get some of that perspective from her view rather than us filming from the side of the course.”

Whatever Fox will face in the kayak final on that last Sunday in July will hold no surprises.

The 29-year-old is already regarded by many as the greatest slalom paddler of all time.

Jess Fox is doing everything she can to get another gold. Picture: Getty Images)

And no stone is being left unturned as she finetunes preparations for her fourth Games, where her legacy will be set.

Fox’s boats, which are already hand made in Europe, have essentially been pimped by the Paddle Australia and AIS boffins to ensure a custom fit and quicker set-up on site to ensure her time on course is spent honing performance.

“We’ve developed some new foot pegs, we’ve developed - with AIS again and they’ve done the actual manufacturing of a lot of these - some new knee cup systems,” Osborne said.

“When Jess gets a new boat, invariably it takes four to six weeks for her to find the ideal set-up position.

“Whereas, we’ve scanned her knees and effectively been able to 3D print knee cups, so we can ensure that every installation is identical.

“What may have taken four to six weeks (in the past) is now down to probably four hours or so.

“Given athletes have limited time on courses, you want to make sure that your set-up is optimal from the get go and you’re not testing boasts, you’re actually getting a feel for the conditions.

“So that’s been significant.”