Olympic

Almost unknown to American paddlers, the Olympics has several kayaking events. There are whitewater races, and flatwater races.

The whitewater races are occasionally done on man made rivers. This lets the organizers have more control over the difficulty of the race. These races are slalom against the clock.

Flatwater racing is on large lakes which are sometimes man made. The races are head-to-head matches with up to 10 boats side by side; the fastest one across the line wins. Typical times for a men's 1000m race are around 3:30 minutes.