Another major step was taken on the road to the Paris 2024 Olympics with the homologation of the scoring and timing system for Canoe Slalom and Kayak Cross.
A team from the International Canoe Federation went to the Integration Testing Lab in Madrid, Spain for a week-long meeting with officials from the Olympic Results and Information Service (ORIS), OMEGA and Atos.
OMEGA, the Official Olympic Timekeeper, and Atos, the Official Olympic Digital Technology Partner, have developed a scoring and timing system that will be used during the Canoe Slalom and Kayak Cross competitions at Paris 2024.
Kayak Cross will make its first appearance at the Olympics as part of the Canoe Slalom program in Paris where paddlers will not only compete against the clock but each other at Vaires-sur-Marne.
Rigorous testing was carried out to ensure the scoring and timing system would be able to successfully respond to a series of potential scenarios.
Homologation of the system started in 2022 and has now been completed following the approval of ORIS.
“This is a significant step forward in our preparations for the Olympic Games,” said Jean-Michel Prono, Chair of the ICF Canoe Slalom Committee.
“ORIS really challenged us to ensure the system will be ready to react to whatever scenario is thrown at us.
“It was a simulation of all the different phases of timing and scoring so we had to create some incidents to see how the system would respond.
“Kayak Cross is a brand new format that will generate a lot of excitement and the testing went very well.
“All the checks were done, and we received very positive feedback which is fantastic.”
In January, the ICF also conducted another site visit of Vaires-sur-Marne as part of the fine-tuning process for the Canoe Slalom course.
The Olympic venue hosted the ICF Canoe Slalom World Cup Final in October 2023 which served as a test event for Paris 2024.
Since then, the ICF has continued to work in collaboration with the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee and the Vaires-sur-Marne whitewater stadium operator to improve the course design and correct any issues.
The fine-tuning process will be completed by mid-May before the beginning of the pre-Games training program.
National Federations will be allowed to send Canoe Slalom paddlers to train on the course during the pre-Games training periods, with the first running from May 20 to 26 followed by the second from June 18 to July 12.
“We are trying to restructure the course to make it better as we want a well-balanced and spectacular course design,” added Mr Prono.
“Once the fine tuning has finished, there will be pre-Games training periods where the athletes will have a certain amount of time on the course.
“All the athletes will have same time on the water which means it will be fair.”
Canoe Slalom will run from July 27 to August 5 at Paris 2024, followed by Canoe Sprint from July 6 to 10.
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