Marcus Cooper (canoeist)

Marcus Cooper
Walz (lane 5) in 2014
Personal information
NationalityBritish (former)
Spanish (current)
BornMarcus Cooper Walz
(1994-10-03) 3 October 1994 (age 31)[1]
Oxford, England[1]
Height1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight85 kg (187 lb)
Sport
CountrySpain
SportSprint kayak
ClubReial Club Nàutic Portopetro

Marcus Cooper Walz (born 3 October 1994) is a sprint canoeist. Born in England, he has competed internationally for Spain since the early 2010s. He won the gold medal in the K-1 1000 metres event at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.[2] He won the silver medal in the Men's K-4 500 metres event at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo with Saúl Craviotto, Carlos Arévalo and Rodrigo Germade.

Born in Oxford to English parents, the family established in Mallorca when Cooper was 3 months old.[3] Walz became a Spanish national in 2015.[4] On 26 June 2024, the Spanish Olympic Committee selected Cooper, together with the Olympic boat driver Támara Echegoyen, as the flag bearers for París 2024.[5][6]

Cooper competed as Marcus Walz until 2022.[7]

Major results

Olympics

Year K-1 1000 K-2 500 K-4 500
2016 1st place, gold medalist(s) N/a N/a
2020 N/a 2nd place, silver medalist(s)
2024 4 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)

World championships

Year K-1 500 K-2 500 K-4 500
2014 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) N/a
2015 2nd place, silver medalist(s) N/a
2017 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s)
2018 2nd place, silver medalist(s)
2019 2nd place, silver medalist(s)
2021 1st place, gold medalist(s)
2022 9 1st place, gold medalist(s)
2023 7

References

  1. ^ a b "COOPER Marcus". Paris 2024 Olympics.
  2. ^ "Marcus Walz". Rio 2016 Olympics. Archived from the original on 26 August 2016. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  3. ^ "De Oxford a Mallorca: Marcus Cooper Walz se hace con el oro en la modalidad K1 de 1000 metros". El Español. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  4. ^ Mínguez, Jesús (16 August 2016). "Spain's Olympic hero Walz only became 'Spanish' one year ago". Diario AS. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  5. ^ "Marcus Cooper y Támara Echegoyen serán los abanderados de España en París" (in Spanish). El País.com. 26 June 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  6. ^ "Clasificación y Plazas Olímpicas París 2024 *". CSD – Consejo Superior de Deportes (in European Spanish). Archived from the original on 8 July 2024.
  7. ^ "Marcus Cooper". International Canoe Federation. Retrieved 6 August 2024.