Canoe sprint is a water sport in which athletes race in specially designed sprint canoes or sprint kayaks on calm water over a short distance. Prior to November 2008, canoe sprint was known as flatwater racing. The term is still in use today but is often used as a hypernym for both canoe marathon and canoe sprint. Similarly, the term 'canoeing' is used to describe both kayaking and canoeing.
A sprint canoe is a canoe used in International Canoe Federation canoe sprint. It is an open boat propelled by one, two or four paddlers from a kneeling position, using single-bladed paddles. The difficulty of balance can depend on how wide or narrow the canoe is, although regularly the less contact a canoe has with the water the faster it goes. This makes the narrower boats much faster and popular when it comes to racing.
Danuta Kozák is a Hungarian sprint canoeist. She has won one silver, one bronze and six Olympic gold medals, three of which in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, making her the first female to win K1, K2 and K4 at the same Olympics. At the 2020 Summer Olympics, she won a gold medal in Women's K-4 500 metres, and bronze medal in Women's K-2 500 metres.
Sebastian Brendel is a German sprint canoeist who has competed since 2007. Brendel is the 2016 Olympic champion in the C-1 1000 metres and C-2 1000 metres events.
Karolina Elżbieta Naja is a Polish sprint canoeist who has competed since the late 2000s. At the 2020 Summer Olympics, she won a bronze medal in Women's K-4 500 metres, and silver medal in Women's K-2 500 metres.
Dame Lisa Marie Carrington is a flatwater canoeist and New Zealand's most successful Olympian, having won a total of eight gold medals and one bronze medal. She won three consecutive gold medals in the Women's K‑1 200 metres at the 2012 Summer Olympics, 2016 Summer Olympics and 2020 Summer Olympics, as well as gold in the same event at the 2011 Canoe Sprint World Championships. At the 2020 Summer Olympics she also won a gold medal in the K‑2 500 metres, with Caitlin Regal, and as an individual in the K‑1 500 metres. At the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Carrington defended her titles in the K‑1 500 metres and K‑2 500 metres event and also won the K‑4 500 metres event. Carrington equalled Danuta Kozák's record of winning all three K-1, K-2, K-4 events, over 500 metres, at one Olympics.
Emma Aastrand Jørgensen is a Danish sprint canoeist. She and her team-mate Henriette Engel Hansen won the women's K-2 1000 m title at the 2014 World Championships.
Sabrina Hering is a German canoeist. She competed in the women's K-4 500 metres event at the 2016 Summer Olympics where the team won a silver medal. She qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics, in the Women's K-4 500 metres.
The women's C-1 200 metres sprint canoeing event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 4 and 5 August 2021 at the Sea Forest Waterway. At least 12 canoeists from at least 12 nations competed.
The men's C-1 1000 metres sprint canoeing event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 6 and 7 August 2021 at the Sea Forest Waterway. At least 12 canoeists from at least 12 nations competed.
The men's C-2 1000 metres sprint canoeing event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 2 and 3 August 2021 at the Sea Forest Waterway. 28 canoeists from 14 nations competed.
The women's K-1 200 metres sprint canoeing event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 2 and 3 August 2021 at the Sea Forest Waterway. At least 12 canoeists from at least 12 nations competed.
The women's K-1 500 metres sprint canoeing event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 4 and 5 August 2021 at the Sea Forest Waterway. At least 13 canoeists from at least 13 nations competed.
Anastasiia Andriyivna Rybachok is a Ukrainian sprint canoeist. She is a two-time Olympic medalist and won silver medals in the women's C-2 500 metres events with Liudmyla Luzan at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2024 Paris Olympics. Rybachok is also a world champion and two-time European champion in the C-2 500 metres. She won her first senior international medal at the 2019 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships.
Nevin Harrison is an American sprint canoeist.
Alicia Hoskin is a New Zealand flatwater canoeist. At the 2024 Summer Olympics, she won two gold medals, in the K‑2 500 metres and the K‑4 500 metres events.
Katherin Nuevo Segura is a Cuban sprint canoeist.
Yarisleidis Cirilo Duboys is a Cuban sprint canoeist and politician.
Sophie Ulrike Koch is a German sprint canoer.
Teruko Kiriake (Japanese: 桐明 輝子, born 6 November 1996) is a Japanese sprint canoer.
