The series continues. With just over 800 days to go before the event, the International Canoe-Kayak Federation (ICF) has unveiled the qualification process and rules for the Paris 2024 Games. The next Olympic meeting will be marked by the entry on the program of a new discipline, extreme slalom. It replaces two road racing events, the men's and women's K1 200 meters. In slalom, the Olympic competitions will bring together 82 athletes, i.e. 40 quotas for men, the same number for women, plus two guaranteed places for France in its capacity as host country of the Games. In detail, 42 quotas are allocated in kayak (men and women), 34 in canoe (men and women), and 6 in extreme slalom (men and women), the majority of athletes entered in this new event being also qualified for “traditional” slalom. Still in white water, each country can only enter one athlete per event. The 2023 World Slalom Championships, scheduled for September 19-24 in Lee Valley, Great Britain, will serve as a global qualifying competition for the 2024 Paris Games, distributing 15 gender quotas in kayak and 12 in canoe. An additional place in K1 and C1 men and women will be allocated during the various continental championships. For the three places in extreme kayaking, the ICF is expected to organize a world qualifying competition in 2024. It will concern athletes who have not yet obtained their qualification in another discipline. Finally, two so-called “universality” quotas are provided for countries that have not been able to qualify athletes during international competitions.
