There are 12 events on the Olympic program.  Events are designated by a letter and a number indicating the type of boat and the number of paddlers in the boat, as well as the distance.  Events beginning with a "C" are canoe events while events beginning with a "K" are kayak events.

                Men                                Women

K-1 200m        C-1 200m                    K-1 200m

K-1 1000m      C-1 1000m                   K-1 500m
    
K-2 200m        C-2 1000m                   K-2 500m

K-2 1000m                                         K-4 500m

The Eton Dorney Rowing Centre at Dorney Lake is the venue that will be used for the canoe/kayak sprint events at the 2012 Games.

London 2012 Storylines:
Canoe/kayak is one sport in which the big Olympic powers – America, China and Russia – have had comparatively little success in recent years. Central and Eastern Europe are currently the powerhouses of the sport.

The major change from Beijing 2008 is the replacement of the men's 500m races with the more explosive 200m races. Women, however, will still race over 500m.

Beijing gold medallist Tim Brabants from Great Britain is a qualified doctor, who took 18 months out of the sport to work in an accident and emergency ward in Nottingham before returning to prepare for the 2012 Games.

Canada's most decorated Olympians in canoe/kayak are Adam van Koeverden and Caroline Brunet, each with three medals.  Awarded the honour of being Canada's Beijing 2008 Opening Ceremony flag bearer, van Koeverden can claim the title all to himself with another podium finish in London 2012.

Canada's Outlook:
Adam van Koeverden will enter the Games with three Olympic medals (1 G, 1 S, 1 B) to his credit, but two of them are in the K-1 500m which is no longer on the Olympic program.  While his strength has been the K-1 500m, van Koeverden has also done well in the K-1 1000m, winning bronze in Athens 2004 along with five World Championship medals, including most recently gold in a dominant performance at the 2011 World Championships in Hungary.

The addition of the 200m events is good news for some other Canadian athletes as Mark de Jonge earned a quota spot for Canada at London 2012 with a gold medal performance in the K-1 200m at the 2011 Pan Am Games in Guadalajara, Mexico.  

The K-2 1000m team of Steven Joren and Richard Dober Jr also enjoyed a great deal of success in Guadalajara by winning gold and earning Canada a quota place.

Mark Oldershaw has emerged as a contender in the C-1 1000m event thanks to a great 2011 season that saw him punch his ticket to London by capturing gold at the World Champinships in Hungary.  Beijing 2008 bronze medallist, Thomas Hall, also remains one of Canada's top performers, and has paired with Ben Russell in the C-2 1000m.

The man to watch in the C-1 200m is Richard Dalton, who won gold and earned an Olympic berth at the Pan Am Games.

The Canadian women's team is led by the K-4 500m crew of Genevieve Orton, Emilie Fournel, Kristin Gauthier and Mylanie Barré. Kia Byers remains Canada's best hope in the K-1 200m while KC Fraser has also emerged in the 2011 season on the national team.



International Athletes – At a Glance:

MEN

K-1 200m

Ronald Rauhe – Germany

• Five-time World Champion (2001-03, 2006, 2009), 2010 World silver medallist and 2011 bronze medallist in the K-1 200m
• Won gold in both of the K-1 200m World Cup events he entered in 2010

K-1 1000m

Max Hoff – Germany

• 2009 and 2010 World Champion in the K-1 1000m
• 2009 and 2010 European Champion in the K-1 1000m
• Fourth at 2011 World Championships in the K-1 1000m

K-2 and K-4

The top team in the world right now in the K-2 200m is the French duo of Arnaud Hybois and Sébastien Jouve, who won gold at the 2010 World Championships and then defended their title at the 2011 World Championships.  They also were a part of the K-4 1000m crew with Etienne Hubert and Phillippe Colin which won gold at the 2010 World Championships.

The team to watch in the K-2 1000m is Germany's Martin Hollstein and Andreas Ihle.  A new partnership just prior to the 2008 Olympic Games, they won gold in Beijing and also took gold at the 2010 World Championships.

C-1 200m

Ivan Shtyl – Russia

• Has been a strong competitor in the C-2 200m for several years, winning gold at the World Championships in 2006 and 2007 and silver in 2009, 2010 and 2011

C-1 1000m

Vadim Menkov – Uzbekistan

• 2009 and 2010 World Champion in the C-1 1000m
• 2011 World Championship bronze medallist in the C-1 1000m
• Won both C-1 1000m World Cup events he entered in 2010

C-2 1000m

The team to watch is the Belarusian brother duo of Alexander and Andrei Bahdanovich.  They are the reigning Olympic Champions in the C-2 1000m and also won silver at the 2010 World Championships.

WOMEN

Natasa Janics – Hungary

• Has had major international success in all four women's events, winning a total of 18 career world championship gold medals and four Olympic medals (3 G, 1 S)
• 2004 Olympic Champion in K-1 500m and K-2 500m; 2008 Olympic Champion in K-2 200m; 2008 Olympic silver medallist in K-4 500m

Inna Osypenko-Radomska  – Ukraine

• 2008 Olympic Champion in the K-1 500m and 2004 Olympic bronze medallist in the K-4 500m
• At the 2010 World Championships she won gold in the K-1 500m and silver in the K-1 200m
• Won bronze at 2011 World Championships in K-1 500m

K-2 and K-4

Hungary is a force to be reckoned with in both the K-2 and K-4 events.  Hungary's gold medal winning K-4 team at the 2011 World Championships included Katalin Kovacs, a six-time Olympic medallist (2 G, 4 S), as well as Dalma Benedek, Gabriella Szabo and Danuta Kozak.

Germany is the other power nation in the team events.  The team finished second at the 2009 and 2010 World Championships after winning gold in Beijing 2008.  The team is led by Katrin Wagner-Augustin a five-time Olympic medallist (4 G, 1 B).