The 1981 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships were held in Bala, Wales, Great Britain from July 15-24 under the auspices of the International Canoe Federation. [1] It was the 17th edition. The mixed C2 event was reinstated after not being held at the previous championships.
| Event | Gold | Points | Silver | Points | Bronze | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C1 |  Jon Lugbill (USA) | 234.58 | David Hearn (USA) | 234.92 |  Jean Sennelier (FRA) | 246.27 |
| C1 team |  United States Jon Lugbill David Hearn Ron Lugbill | 251.02 | France Hervé Madore Jean Sennelier Jean Salamé | 292.69 |  West Germany Gerald Moos Fredi Zimmermann Jürgen Schnitzerling | 333.38 |
| C2 | United States Steve Garvis Mike Garvis | 264.23 | West Germany Dieter Welsink Peter Czupryna | 271.68 | United States Paul Grabow Jefry Huey | 272.78 |
| C2 team |  United Kingdom Jock Young & Alistair Munro Robert Joce & Robert Owen Eric Jamieson & Robin Williams | 338.17 |  Poland Wojciech Kudlik & Jerzy Jeż Marek Maslanka & Ryszard Seruga Zbigniew Czaja & Jacek Kasprzycki | 356.30 | United States Carl Gutschick & Paul Flack Paul Grabow & Jefry Huey Steve Garvis & Mike Garvis | 395.14 |
| Event | Gold | Points | Silver | Points | Bronze | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K1 | Richard Fox (GBR) | 211.94 |  Luboš Hilgert (TCH) | 214.35 | Jean-Yves Prigent (FRA) | 219.58 |
| K1 team | United Kingdom Richard Fox Albert Kerr Nicolas Wain | 246.55 |  Switzerland Jürg Götz Urs Steinmann Milo Duffek | 251.58 | France Jean-Yves Prigent Thierry Junquet Bernard Renault | 252.37 |
| Event | Gold | Points | Silver | Points | Bronze | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C2 | United States Elizabeth Hayman Fritz Haller | 355.12 | United States Barbara McKee John Sweet | 442.58 | United States Karen Marte Brett Sorensen | 464.39 |
| Event | Gold | Points | Silver | Points | Bronze | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K1 | Ulrike Deppe (FRG) | 257.69 | Cathy Hearn (USA) | 262.79 | Jocelyne Roupioz (FRA) | 270.10 |
| K1 team | West Germany Ulrike Deppe Susanne Erbers Gabriele Köllmann | 303.10 | United Kingdom Elizabeth Sharman Jane Roderick Susan Small | 326.80 | United States Linda Harrison Cathy Hearn Yuri Kusuda | 333.69 |
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States (USA) | 4 | 3 | 4 | 11 |
| 2 | Great Britain (GBR) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 | West Germany (FRG) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 4 | France (FRA) | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 5 | Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Poland (POL) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| Switzerland (SUI) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| Totals (7 entries) | 9 | 9 | 9 | 27 | |
