First becoming an Olympic sport in 1936, canoeing has split into two categories, each of which requires a different set of skills.

Slalom

In canoe slalom, the event is a timed run on a course featuring whitewater rapids that contains around 20 gates made of two hanging poles. The gates need to be passed through without touching or missing them, as touching one would cost a paddler a two-second penalty and missing one would incur a 50-second penalty. The athletes compete in either a covered canoe where they paddle from their knees with their legs tucked underneath them. In the kayak, the athletes sit with their feet stretched out in front of them. With the course requiring athletes to make quick turns, the boats are small and light to allow them to better maneuver through the fast-flowing water.

Canoe slalom will take place from July 25 to 30.

Venue and access information

Canoe Slalom will take place at the 7,500-seat Kasai Canoe Slalom Centre, the first man-made course in Japan, located right next to Kasai Rinaki Park. The venue is about 12 minutes from Kasairinkaikoen Station and Kasairinkaikoen Ekimae bus stop from Kasai and Ichinoe stations.

Sprint

In canoe sprints, two types of boats — canoes and kayaks — are raced over distances ranging from 200, 500 and 1,000 meters and the athletes participate as singles, pairs and fours for the kayak 500-meter race. In single canoe sprints, the athletes can only paddle on one side of the canoe from a kneeling position with a single-bladed paddle, while doubles sees the one person paddling on each side of the canoe. Kayaks can be steered by pedals that control a rudder, while canoes need to be steered with the paddles.

Kayakers use two-bladed paddles from a sitting position and there are events for singles, doubles and teams of four over the same distances as canoes.

Canoe sprint will take place from Aug. 2 to 7.

Venue and access information

Canoe sprint will take place at the Sea Forest Waterway, a new area of reclaimed land in Tokyo Bay that has a capacity of 12,800. The venue is about 20 minutes from the Kankyokyoku-chubo-godochoshaMae on the Toei Bus Nami No. 1 that runs past Telecom Center Station on the Yurikamome Line, Tokyo’s first fully automated train that runs between Shimbashi and Toyosu via Odaiba, a large man-made island in Tokyo Bay that features a mix of commercial, residential and leisure properties.