Oklahoma City had a kayaking star long before the Boathouse District’s arrival

Long before anyone ever imagined racing canoes and kayaks in downtown Oklahoma City on the Oklahoma River, Marcia Jones Smoke was the best female kayaker in the country.

BY ED GODFREY | Modified: September 29, 2012 at 10:20 pm | Published: September 30, 2012

Long before the boathouses were built on the Oklahoma River, America’s best paddler was from Oklahoma City.

Marcia Jones Smoke, 71, was an 11-time United States champion in kayaking. She is the only American woman to win an Olympic medal in kayaking in an individual race.

photo - Boats compete on a cloudy, rainy day at the Oklahoma Regatta Festival on the Oklahoma River on Saturday. The event ends Sunday. Photo by Jim Beckel, The Oklahoman

Boats compete on a cloudy, rainy day at the Oklahoma Regatta Festival on the Oklahoma River on Saturday. The event ends Sunday. Photo by Jim Beckel, The Oklahoman

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Article Gallery: Oklahoma City had a kayaking star long before the Boathouse District’s arrival

Jones Smoke, who now lives in Michigan, is a 1959 graduate of Casady High School. In 1964, the 23-year-old Marcia Jones (she married in 1965) won the bronze medal in the K1 500 meters at the...
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