Slalom canoeists Jessica and Noémie Fox have competed against each other since they were children but this is the first year they have both raced at the Olympics.
Everyone in their family is an Olympic athlete: mother Myriam Fox-Jerusalmi won bronze at the Atlanta 1996 Games for K1, while their father Richard Fox represented Britain in the same event at the Barcelona Games in 1992.
Jess, 30, made her Olympic debut as an 18-year-old at the 2012 London Games, going on to compete in Rio, Tokyo and Paris and winning six medals,
including three gold
.
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For the history books: Australia's best Games, our youngest medallist, and more Olympic firstsAlthough younger sister Noémie, 27, has been competing at the international level since 2013, she has previously missed out on a spot on the Olympic team because Australia's only slot went to Jess.
But a new Olympic event introduced this year —
the kayak cross
— finally gave Noémie a chance to represent her country.
On their return from Paris, Jess and Noémie talk about what it was like to compete against each other, and the moment Noémie finally joined the rest of her family, not just as an Olympian but as a gold medallist.
This story is part of SBS'
, which tells the same story from the perspectives of two different people.
How long have you wanted to be an Olympic champion?
Noémie: Ever since I can remember. Both my parents are Olympians so I naturally thought I'd be an Olympian and then I realised, 'Oh, it's much harder than I thought'.
Mother Myriam Fox-Jerusalmi (right) won bronze while representing France in the women's K1 event at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Source: Getty / AFP
Did you ever feel that you weren't going to get there?
Noémie: Yes, there were moments. There's just one person that gets a spot for our country in the [C1 and K1] event, and that's always been [my sister] Jess, and she's at the top of her game and she's unbeatable.
You think, 'All my family will be Olympians and I will be the odd one out, or the ugly duckling'.
Noemie Fox
But deep down, I just really trusted the process; I knew that I love what I do, I love my sport and if the Olympics come and there's an opportunity, we'll seize it.
Noémie and Jess Fox as children with their father Richard Fox. Source: Supplied
What's it like having someone so competitive in your own family? Does it affect your relationship with your sister?
Noémie: On the water she's very competitive but in person, she's not at all competitive. She's so supportive.
She was my sparring partner, and we really helped each other grow as competitors.
When we practice, it can be quite aggressive, it can be quite hard, but because she's my sister, she's always going to forgive me.
To end up in the same [kayak cross] heat so early on was extremely tough — I just didn't want to face her that soon. It was something we wanted to do either in the final or later down the track ... [and] to finish one and two but that didn't happen.
When I went through, she was my first supporter and was cheering me down the whole way.
I think what we have is incredibly special. There are moments where your competitive sides clash a little bit, but at the end of the day what we've experienced has created such a beautiful bond.
What was Noémie like growing up?
Jess: We have always been close, I remember playing together from a young age with our dolls and toys and spending every summer with our neighbours splashing in the pool.
Noémie was cheeky and energetic; she loved performing. She was always keen to do whatever I did.
I remember I was taking ages to learn how to ride a bike and using training wheels, and Noémie just one day started trying to do it herself in the backyard. [She wasn't] afraid to stack it.
Jess and Noémie Fox have enjoyed being on the water since they were children. Source: Supplied
When you are racing against your sister, is there something holding you back sometimes?
Noémie: I think so; I think with everyone else they're a competitor.
With Jess, I didn't want her to knock me out, and I didn't want to knock her out, and the feeling's very mutual for her.
Noemie Fox
[But] neither of [those things] happened. I went through and she didn't have a good start and she got held back.
It was hard to cross the finish line and see her stuck.
Jess: There was a bit of disappointment initially to not get further into the competition, but that’s kayak cross and I knew that could happen. There’s a lot you can’t control.
Seeing Noémie smash each round made me so proud and excited for her that there was absolutely no personal disappointment because it just turned into support and joy for her.
Jess (right) watches as Noémie speaks to the media after arriving back in Sydney following their successful Olympic campaign. Source: Getty / Jason McCawley
Does it feel tiring at times for your achievements to be put in the context of your sibling rivalry?
Noémie: Definitely. I'd have extended family [say] 'Oh, you still do kayaking?'. They just thought it was Jess that did it and [I'm] there ticking along, like: 'Yeah, I still do it'. So that was hard.
Then obviously [there's] self-doubt: 'Will I ever be good enough?'
I did a lot of work on making sure I understand myself well — self-worth, self-belief and my strengths as well.
Even now, it's still the 'Fox sisters show' but we are individual gold medallists as well.
Is there anything you wish Noémie understood about what it’s like to be her big sister?
Jess: I think there’s a mutual respect, understanding, love and joy that we share when we watch each other and support each other racing. We are close and talk about it, so I’m sure she knows how I feel.
I think it’s been hard for her to always be in my shadow, to be known as my little sister and always compared to me.
Jess Fox
I’ve felt moments of guilt around that, but now being able to share this together is one of the greatest joys in my life.
Jessica Fox competes during the women's canoe single semi-final on day five of the Paris Games 2024. Source: Getty / Francois Nel
How did it feel to win gold in C1 and K1, Jess? Was it different to winning your first gold?
Jess: I feel like I had the perfect Games. It felt different to Tokyo because I’d finally cracked that "curse" and got the gold there.
Here, it was about getting the kayak [gold] and defending the canoe [gold], and the mindset and energy around the race felt very different. Having a crowd was unbelievable and I had the best time.
Jess celebrates after the medal ceremony of the women's canoe single final. Source: Getty / Alex Davidson
How is the kayak cross event different to C1 and K1?
Noémie: We aren't in the same carbon fibre boats, we're in a plastic boat that weighs 18 kilos — that's nine kilos heavier than the slalom boats.
With that comes a lot of extra strength work in the gym, injury management and prevention.
It's a different sport because there's contact. For me, the main work that we did was not being scared.
Noémie Fox (right) battles against Britain's Kimberley Woods in the women's kayak cross final. Source: Getty / Bertrand Guay/AFP
In slalom, we go down by ourselves; you're all by yourself on the river. The goal is to be in that state of flow [and] make it look elegant.
In kayak cross, there [are] other people affecting your race.
[I] had to do a lot of training to not be distracted by someone, to not back down if they're chasing you [and] to really get used to the feeling of chasing and being chased, and the adrenaline rush that comes with that.
How did you feel before Noémie’s final and while watching her race?
Jess: So nervous. I felt sick and actually started my watch activity to see what my heart rate was during her races — it hit 188 beats per minute.
I get more nervous watching her than I do competing.
You jumped into the water after Noémie won her race — along with your mum and your sister's boyfriend — what was that moment like?
Jess: [Noémie] was taking too long to get out — and get close to the bank for a hug — so I jumped in because I couldn’t hold it in any longer.
Jess jumped into the water to hug and congratulate Noémie after she won gold for the kayak cross event. Source: AAP / Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP
It was a moment of pure joy, euphoria and pride seeing her absolutely smash the final.
I gave it everything as the cheerleader on the bank and lost my voice, cried all the tears and couldn’t stop smiling.
How did it feel to get over that line and know that you were a gold medallist?
Noémie: It took a while to sink in. I didn't feel nervous [ahead of the race]; I felt so ready to be there. I told myself 'You've won every single race up until now'.
I was just really in the moment, enjoying it, which is a state of mind that I'm really proud of, and that's quite hard to achieve.
Noemie Fox
You don't hear the crowd — it's like a buzz, this energy — but I was quite close to the bank where the teams run down ... and I heard my mum scream to say that I was out in front, and I felt that charge. That was the moment where it pushed me forward.
Noémie reacts after winning the gold medal in the kayak cross final. Source: Getty / Kevin Voigt
When I crossed the line, it was just a lot of emotions, and also kind of disbelief that: 'Wow, I just did the race of my life'.
It wasn't until I saw the boys' final [after my race] and saw my friend cross the finish line first for New Zealand that I kind of realised: 'Wow, I did that too. We're both Olympic champions'.
An emotional Noémie Fox kisses her gold medal after winning the women's kayak cross final in Paris. Source: Getty / Kevin Voigt
Having dreamed about it for so long, do you think it lived up to the hype?
Noémie: I was not prepared for what Paris was going to be like. It was beyond any sort of imaginable feeling and experience.
It was for me, pure magic, partly because I'm half French and so there's that really big tie there. But also I love Paris.
I let myself fully immerse into the Olympic movement; live the highs of when people won and then the lows of when a favourite was knocked out.
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How Australian athletes turned to crowdfunding to get to Paris OlympicsI don't know how anything can live up to what Paris was — to walk away with a gold medal at my first Olympics — [and] to live so many intense family moments: to watch my sister win two gold medals, and then my friends as well.
Do you have a favourite moment?
Noémie: After my own podium [win], it was walking out in Champions Park [where medallists walk the runway in front of a crowd].
I was wearing my medal, the Eiffel Tower was in front of us — we had our own piece of the Eiffel Tower around our necks — and music was blasting; people were cheering and they knew our names, and they were asking for photos.
I think that will forever be my main memory from Paris that I latch on to for the rest of my life.
Noémie (right) poses with Jess at Champions Park after winning gold at the Olympics in Paris. Source: Getty / Luke Hales
Is there anything you wish people understood about what it’s like to be an Olympic athlete?
Jess: It’s years of training and preparation, sacrifice and dedication to try and perform on one day every four years — that’s pretty intense.
It’s both isolating and terrifying and at the same time exhilarating and inspiring.
All the Aussie athletes you saw gave their heart and for some, it worked out — they achieved personal bests, their goals and dreams.
For others, it was heartbreak and loss, feelings of failure — but we are human and [the] moments of vulnerability and courage should also be celebrated.
