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He's one of the best kayakers in the world. Adam van Koeverden captured Canadian hearts and a silver medal at the Beijing Olympic games in August.

The 26-year-old kayak racer loves speed on the road as well as on the water. But he needs a large car capable of hauling all his gear. That's why he drives a white 2008 Mazda3 Sport GT hatchback.

"It's got zoom, zoom. It's definitely fast enough for me," says the Olympic and World Champion.

"It's not the fastest car on the market, but it's got a lot of low-end speed. It's peppy off the line. In races, I'm quick off the line, too," says the Oakville, Ont., native, who won silver in the men's K1 500-metre kayak final in Beijing — he bounced back after a devastating loss in the 1,000 metres, where he finished eighth.

"I use my car for a lot more than getting from A to B. I can put two boats and two bikes on the roof on the roof racks. Having two K1s and two bikes on my roof is good because I'm a very active person and I always take my toys with me.

"I'm 26 and I'm pretty mobile and I like listening to a lot of music — it's got a great Bose stereo system.

"And the portability of being able to throw the roof racks on really, really quick and just get everything in my car and go for a weekend, a week, or three months is definitely part of me," says van Koeverden, whose car is littered with stuff; the second-row seats are folded down to accommodate a bike, a guitar, a suit, several pairs of running shoes and an LCBO bag filled with three bottles.

He doesn't own or lease his wheels. "Mazda chose to sponsor us. I didn't choose a Mazda. Having been driving one for five years, I'm definitely satisfied….

"When we're talking about sponsorships and what a company can do, it's not all about dollars and cents all the time. It's not costing Mazda very much to throw a couple of Mazdas at the team and they're getting more out of it at the end of the day. It's a wholesome association for them and we're a great team. We're accomplishing our goals, thanks to Mazda," says the muscular 5-foot-11, 190-lb, dark-haired, dark-eyed athlete.

He bought his first car, a 1990 Plymouth Horizon, at 16 for $1,800. "It was awesome. It was also white. It had a red interior and a sunroof. It was a four-cylinder … and it was the best car a 16-year-old could have. It was awesome"

But it wasn't always reliable. "The windshield wipers stopped working in the winter so I had to pull over every 500-600 meters on my way to school and wipe off the snow because I couldn't see anything.

"After about six months, the gas meter stopped working properly. It would stick at the half-tank mark and when it was right about to die it would fall all the way down and you'd know you'd have about two-three kilometres left.

"So I ran out of gas quite a few times. That wasn't fun. I'd run or hitchhike depending on how far I was," says van Koeverden, who graduated from McMaster University in 2007, valedictorian of his class.

The kayaker isn't just addicted to speed on the water. "I definitely like to drive fast. I'm on the more aggressive end of most drivers. I know where I'm going and I want to get there quickly. I don't sit in the right-hand lane. I'm always in the left-hand lane if I'm going fast and passing.

"I do resent the speed limit being what it is most times because I think cars are designed to drive faster and they're much safer driving faster than they were 16 years ago so there's no reason to have the speed limit where it is. When I drive in Europe it's just as safe and a lot more conducive to getting where you're going," says van Koeverden, who is in the midst of training and attending several charity functions this month, including Gold Medal Plates, a gala fundraiser held across Canada to support Canadian Olympic and Paralympic athletes.

But speed has landed him in trouble. "I've gotten quite a few speeding tickets. Probably why my complaint regarding the speed limit. And they [police officers] never let me off. I'm not pretty enough, I guess," laughs the athlete, dressed in a retro Beaver canoe T-shirt, black leather jacket, funky striped pants and dark designer shades.

And that's not all. "I've got into a few accidents; that really sucks. Just regular little fender-benders that really suck. That's embarrassing, I guess."

Of course, multi-tasking on the road doesn't help. Both hands on his BlackBerry, we drive along the Lakeshore in Toronto; he steers the wheel with his left knee.

"I prefer manual. I like having a clutch, but I'm always eating in my car when I'm driving on my way to practice. I eat all day so it's not uncommon for me to have yogurt with granola while I'm driving and also talking on the phone.

"It's probably a better thing for me to have an automatic so there's one less thing to worry about," says van Koeverden, who also won two medals in the Athens 2004 Olympics — a gold in the K1 500 metre and a silver in the K1 1000 metre; he was also named Canada's best athlete that year.

But there's one thing he'd change on the Mazda3. "I'd probably make it a hybrid or make it run on garbage like the [car] in Back to the Future.

"While I'm at it, if I'm going to be changing it to the one in Back to the Future then I guess I'll make it travel through time, too," he laughs.

Maybe then he could go back and get that second Olympic medal in Beijing.