Paris Olympics: What to know and who to watch during the canoe/kayak competition
Casey Eichfeld of the United States competes during the canoe single C1 men's heats of the Canoe Slalom at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Aug. 7, 2016. The 34-year-old Eichfeld is going to his fourth Olympics after competing in Beijing, London and Rio de Janeiro. Credit: AP/Kirsty Wigglesworth
A roadmap to follow for the canoe/kayak competition at the Paris Olympics:
Athletes to Watch
—Lisa Carrington, New Zealand: Carrington won three gold medals at the Tokyo Games; the K-1 200 meters, the K-1 500 meters and the K-2 500 meters.
—Casey Eichfeld, United States: The 34-year-old Eichfeld is going to his fourth Olympics after competing in Beijing, London and Rio de Janeiro.
—Aimee Fisher, New Zealand: Fisher recently beat Carrington in the K-1 500 at the ICF Canoe World Cup and set the world's best time in the event this year.
—Evy Leibfarth, United States: The 20-year-old Leibfarth will be the first American woman to compete in three whitewater events; canoe slalom, kayak slalom and kayak cross. She finished 18th in canoe slalom and 12th in kayak slalom at the Tokyo Olympics when she was 17.
—Nevin Harrison, United States: Harrison won the C-1 200-meter race in Tokyo and is back to try again.
Lisa Carrington of New Zealand competes in the women's kayak single 500m heat at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. Carrington won three gold medals at the Tokyo Games. Credit: AP/Kirsty Wigglesworth
Storylines to Follow
—There will be a new event this year: the kayak cross. Four competitors slide off a ramp and maneuver through an obstacle course. Competitors can use their paddles against each other. They also must execute an Eskimo roll before crossing the finish line — that means flipping 360 degrees into the water then landing upright.
Key Dates
Canoe slalom, including kayak cross, begins on July 27. The finals are held from July 28 to Aug. 5. Canoe sprint begins on Aug. 6. The finals are held from Aug. 8 to Aug. 10.
Nevin Harrison, of the United States, competes in the women's canoe single 200m final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. Harrison won the C-1 200-meter race in Tokyo and is back to try again. Credit: AP/Kirsty Wigglesworth
Reigning Champions
Men’s Slalom
—C-1: Benjamin Savsek, Slovenia.
—K-1: Jiri Prskavek, Czech Republic.
Women's Slalom
—C-1: Jessica Fox, Australia.
—K-1: Ricarda Funk, Germany.
Men’s Sprint
—C-1 1000m: Isaquias Queiroz, Brazil.
—C-2 1000m: Serguey Torres and Fernando Jorge, Cuba.
—K-1 200m: Sandor Totka, Hungary.
—K-1 1000m: Balint Kopasz, Hungary.
—K-2 1000m: Jean van der Westhuyzen and Thomas Green, Australia.
—K-4 500m: Max Rendschmidt, Ronald Rauhe, Tom Liebscher and Max Lemke, Germany.
Women’s Sprint
—C-1 200m: Nevin Harrison, United States.
—C-2 500m: Xu Shixiao and Sun Mengya, China.
—K-1 200m: Lisa Carrington, New Zealand.
—K-1 500m: Lisa Carrington, New Zealand.
—K-4 500m: Danuta Kozak, Tamara Csipes, Anna Karasz and Dora Bodonyi, Hungary.
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