Summer Olympic Sports >>Canoe / Kayak Flatwater

ABOUT

Like many Olympic sports with ancient roots, Canoe and Kayak racing evolved from the great and proud history of boats propelled with paddles dating back to the Stone Age, from Samaria to the Americas, Oceania and Australia to Greenland, Asia to Africa.  Examples of crafts used to transport people and goods to hunt, make war and perform burial rites can be found throughout the world.

The earliest canoes were carved from logs or whalebone and driftwood frame, with a sea-lion skin stretched tautly over it and waterproofed with whale fat.  The once fragile but easily manoeuvred craft have evolved into sleek high performance boats that knife through the water with great speed.

The sport of canoeing consists of a wide variety of craft that are adapted to the types of water over which competitions are held.  Common to all are three critical aspects:

- The peddler faces forward

- The paddle is no way attached to the boat

- It’s entirely powered with human energy

Canoe / Kayak require coordinated motion between the athlete, the paddle, the boat as the vehicle providing buoyancy and the water as the medium of transport.

Internationally, the word “canoeing” is often a collective term for both canoeing and kayaking contains of several disciplines and type of boats, thus the name International Canoe Federation (ICF)

Flatwater canoeing is based in pure “speed on the course” and requires calm water surface.

The kayak of Greenland and Alaska Eskimos origin, was the ancestor of the modern kayak, while the canoe originating from the North American Indians.

The link was 19th century British barrister John MacGregor.  He studied the ancient kayaks, designed a similar boat and disappeared into the rivers and lakes of Europe's wilderness to become a noted travel writer of his time.  When others copied his boat, he founded the Royal Canoe Club, and canoe regattas began a year later in 1866.

Canoe/kayak, consisting solely of Flatwater Racing, was a demonstration competition at the 1924 Olympic Games before gaining full-medal status in 1936.  Europe remains the traditional power base, led by Germany, Hungary, Romania, Russia and Poland.  However in recent years athletes from many other countries and continents have won Olympic medals.

COMPETITION

Races are held on flat water, with competitors assigned to lanes.  Women were added to the program later, and compete only in kayaks, the closed boats paddled from a sitting position with a double-blade paddle.  Men race in kayaks and canoes, the open boats paddled from a kneeling position with a single-blade paddle.

There are single, double and four boats.  The kayak boats are identified by the letter “K” while the canoes are prefixed by a “C”.

Women race in the 500-metre K1, K2 and K4 (denoting one, two or four paddlers in a kayak).  Men compete in the 500m and 1000m K1 and K2, 1000m K4 and 500m and 1000m C1 and C2 (canoe).

LIST OF EVENTS *

• C-1 1000m (canoe single) Men

• C-1 500m (canoe single) Men

• C-2 1000m (canoe double) Men

• C-2 500m (canoe double) Men

• K-1 1000m (kayak single) Men

• K-1 500m (kayak single) Men

• K-2 1000m (kayak double) Men

• K-2 500m (kayak double) Men

• K-4 1000m (kayak four) Men

• K-1 500m (kayak single) Women

• K-2 500m (kayak double) Women

• K-4 500m (kayak four) Women