Kayak-X (kayak cross) is the new sport coming to the Paris Olympics in 2024 for the first time. Kayak-X combines speed and tactics with competitors racing in plastic creek boats.

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The event is split into two stages. The first is a time trial… and the 32 fastest boats then progress into 4-boat head-head races, with the fastest 2 boats progressing at each stage.

 

The excitement begins from the very start, with competitors launching off a ramp more than two metres above the water and splashing onto the course.

 

From there it’s a race to the first buoy, and it is a case of almost anything goes as each paddler tries to steal an advantage over their opponents.

 

Athletes need to negotiate both downstream and upstream buoys, and contact is allowed – adding to the thrills, spills and excitement for spectators and athletes alike.

 

Then there’s the compulsory roll zone in which athletes must successfully capsize their kayak and roll backup.

 

There are a variety of ways to get disqualified – breaking the start, missing a buoy, dangerous paddling, or failing to complete the roll within the allocated area.

 

Most races are over in around a minute, but times are not important. Kayak-X is very much a race of tactics, and it sometimes does not pay to lead early. Athletes have various choices to make, including which side of the course they should take. In each round the first two paddlers progress to the next round until only 4 paddlers are left in the final…