Posted: Wednesday 22 February 2012
Olympic Countdown - No. 7 Canoeing
Canoeing at the London Olympics
At the Olympics this summer, there will be two canoeing competitions – the slalom and the sprint.
The canoe slalom competition will consist of timed runs down the white water course at the Lee Valley White Water Centre in Hertfordshire. The course itself will contain up to 25 gates (two striped poles hanging just above the water from a wire strung over the course) and should a competitor touch one of these gates during a run, they will have a 2 second penalty added to their overall time. If they miss a gate, the punishment is much more severe with a 50 second penalty being added.
In contrast to the slalom, the canoe sprint competition will take place on still water at Eton Darney, near Windsor Castle. Athletes will race solo, in pairs or in fours over distances of 200m, 500m and 1000m.
So, no kayaking then?
Wrong. Although the slalom and the sprint are referred to as canoeing competitions, they will both have dedicated kayaking events.
If you are planning to watch the slalom or the sprint this summer, you may notice that there are some basic differences between canoes and kayaks. Firstly, in canoeing the competitor kneels to paddle whilst the kayaker paddles sitting down.
Furthermore, a canoe paddle has a flat blade on only one end of the paddle shaft while the kayak paddle has a curved blade on each end.
Rights to canoe/kayak
If you fancy taking up canoeing or kayaking, you may be surprised to learn that your rights of access to inland waters vary considerably depending on whether you are north or south of the border.
As a result of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 (the “2003 Act”), everyone has a statutory right to access over land in Scotland and this right extends to cover access to inland water. As a result, provided you are exercising the right of access responsibly (i.e. in terms of the Scottish Outdoor Access Code), you will have a right to canoe or kayak on inland waters.
Whilst the 2003 Act does not grant rights of access to the sea, the sea kayakers amongst us can rest assured that there has long been a common law right allowing access to the sea for recreational purposes. The Scottish Law Commission has proposed that these common law rights be made statutory although the matter has not yet been brought forward by the Scottish government.
The position south of the border is not quite so welcoming.
Although similar “right to roam” legislation was passed in 2000, the rights of access granted did not extend to inland water despite heavy lobbying by the British Canoe Union and it is estimated that only 2% of rivers in England and Wales actually have public access rights.
