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List of artificial whitewater courses

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The first whitewater slalom race took place on the Aar River in Switzerland in 1933.[1] The early slalom courses were all set in natural rivers, but when whitewater slalom became an Olympic sport for the first time, at the 1972 Munich Games, the venue was the world's first concrete-channel artificial whitewater course, the Eiskanal in Augsburg. All Olympic whitewater slalom competitions have taken place in artificial courses, which now exist in 16 countries on five continents.

Streambed slalom courses still outnumber concrete channels, but most international competition takes place in the more controlled environment of an artificial course. The standard parameters for such a course, patterned on the Olympic model, are a length of about 300 metres (980 ft), a slope of 2% (20 m/km [110 ft/mi]), and a flow rate of 17 cubic metres per second (600 cu ft/s). Within those parameters, designs vary. Water diversion features can be natural rocks, shaped concrete boulders and wing dams, plastic bollards, wooden dams, or truck tires. Channel walls can be straight or slanted, and smooth or cobbled. The floor of the channel may have raised turbulence generators to slow the water speed. The course may be a single straight channel, parallel channels, one or more loops, or a figure-8.

Map
Map

Water can be supplied by diversion from a nearby river, tidal current, electric pumps, or a combination. The expense of operation is largely dependent on the water source. A single channel on the Olympic model — a six-metre (20 ft) drop at 17 m³/s — represents one megawatt of energy, either supplied by pumps or sacrificed in the case of diversion around a hydroelectric generator. Ironically, diversion is often more expensive than pumping if the diverted water would have made a bigger drop inside the hydroelectric facility. The extreme example of this is the Ocoee Whitewater Center where water must bypass a 96-metre (315 ft) drop in a dam, tunnel, and penstock, in order to water the 9-meter drop of the whitewater course.

Most artificial whitewater courses cover their operating costs by charging passengers for guided raft rides. Canoe and kayak slalom training and competition do not generate enough revenue.

The four riverbed courses on this list are all extensively engineered and used for major competitions. Ocoee is no longer used for slalom, but it was the 1996 Olympic venue. The other courses on the list have concrete channels, often built in former industrial canals or mill races. Every city that hosts a summer Olympics is now expected to build a spectacular new whitewater stadium, usually powered by electric pumps. The Lee Valley White Water Centre, constructed for the London 2012 Summer Olympics, cost £31million.[2]

In the table below, the location of each facility for which there is no Wikipedia article is noted in the Comment column. If the facility is more than two years old, there is often a good satellite or aerial (bird's eye) picture available via the link.

Artificial whitewater canoe/kayak slalom courses — grouped by country — listed by completion date
Slope Streamflow
Date Course name Location Water source Power source Shape ft/mi (m/km) cu ft/s (m³/s) Comment
Australia
2000 Penrith Whitewater Stadium Penrith Penrith Lakes Pumped Loop 91 (17) 494 (14) 2000 Olympics Sydney
1974 Brady's Lake Slalom Course Bradys Lake, Tasmania Bronte Lagoon Dam release, Natural modified Riverbed 106 (20)[3] 918 (26) 42°13′43″S 146°29′40″E / 42.2286°S 146.4945°E / -42.2286; 146.4945 (Brady's Lake Slalom Course)
Austria
2013 Vienna Watersports Arena Vienna New Danube Pumped Loop 79 (15) 424 (12) 48°11′36″N 16°27′43″E / 48.1934°N 16.4619°E / 48.1934; 16.4619 (Vienna Watersports Arena)
Brazil
2006 Itaipu Slalom Course Foz do Iguaçu Itaipu Lake, Paraná River Flow diversion & Pumped Loop 115 (22) 441 (13) 25°25′55″S 54°34′52″W / 25.432°S 54.581°W / -25.432; -54.581 (Itaipu Slalom Course)
2015 Deodoro Olympic Whitewater Stadium Rio de Janeiro city water Pumped 2 Loops 95 (18) 420 (12) 2016 Olympics Rio de Janeiro
Canada
Canoe Meadows Race Course Kananaskis Kananaskis River Dam release, Natural modified Linear (27–31) Normal 51°03′18″N 115°01′08″W / 51.054965°N 115.018834°W / 51.054965; -115.018834 (Canoe Meadows Race Course)
Minden Wild Water Preserve[4] Minden, Ontario Gull River Dam release, Natural modified Riverbed, Maintained 825–1650 (25–50) 2015 Pan-Am Games
Pumphouse Tailrace Ottawa Ottawa River Flow diversion Linear 45°25′01″N 75°42′40″W / 45.417°N 75.711°W / 45.417; -75.711 (Pumphouse Tailrace)
Rutherford Whitewater Park Whistler Rutherford Creek Flow diversion Linear 50°16′26″N 122°52′01″W / 50.274°N 122.867°W / 50.274; -122.867 (Rutherford Whitewater Park)
China
2004 Whitewater Stadium of Nanjing Nanjing Xuanwu Lake Pumped Loop 79 (15) 565 (16) 32°03′54″N 118°48′36″E / 32.065°N 118.81°E / 32.065; 118.81 (Whitewater Stadium of Nanjing)
2007 Shunyi Rowing-Canoeing Park Shunyi Chaobai River Pumped Loop 110 (21) 2008 Olympics Beijing
2007 Xiasi Canoe Slalom Course Xiasi Qingshui River Flow diversion Linear 102 (19) 424 (12) 26°31′37″N 107°48′14″E / 26.527°N 107.804°E / 26.527; 107.804 (Xiasi Canoe Slalom Course)
2007 Rizhao Canoe Slalom Course Rizhao Rizhao Harbor Pumped Loop 35°25′05″N 119°33′40″E / 35.418°N 119.561°E / 35.418; 119.561 (Rizhao Canoe Slalom Course)
Miyi Canoe Slalom Training Base Miyi Peace River Flow diversion Linear 119 (23) 494 (14) 26°54′22″N 102°07′01″E / 26.906°N 102.117°E / 26.906; 102.117 (Miyi Canoe Slalom Training Base)
Czech Republic
1983 Prague-Troja Canoeing Centre Prague-Troja Vltava Flow diversion Linear 63 (12) 565 (16) 50°06′47″N 14°25′30″E / 50.113°N 14.425°E / 50.113; 14.425 (Prague-Troja Canoeing Centre)
České Vrbné Slalom Course České Budějovice Vltava Flow diversion Linear 49°00′47″N 14°27′07″E / 49.013°N 14.452°E / 49.013; 14.452 (Ceske Vrbne Slalom Course)
1984 Veltrusy Slalom Course Veltrusy Vltava Flow diversion Linear 53.50 (10) 353 (10) 50°16′37″N 14°18′54″E / 50.277°N 14.315°E / 50.277; 14.315 (Veltrusy Slalom Course)
Trnávka Slalom Course Želiv Trnava Flow diversion Linear 86(16) 424(12) 49°31′26″N 15°13′08″E / 49.524°N 15.219°E / 49.524; 15.219 (Trnávka Slalom Course)
Roudnice nad Labem Roudnice nad Labem Elbe Flow diversion Linear 50°25′44″N 14°15′36″E / 50.429°N 14.260°E / 50.429; 14.260 (Roudnice nad Labem)
USD Opava Opava Opava (river) Flow diversion Linear 49°57′28″N 17°53′08″E / 49.9577°N 17.8856°E / 49.9577; 17.8856 (Opava)
Proposed Zdiměřice Whitewater Park Zdiměřice Pumped Loop 49°59′17″N 14°31′41″E / 49.988°N 14.528°E / 49.988; 14.528 (Zdiměřice Whitewater Park)
France
1988 Épinal Slalom Course Épinal Moselle River Flow diversion Linear 48°10′23″N 6°26′46″E / 48.173°N 6.446°E / 48.173; 6.446 (Épinal Slalom Course)
1992 Lannion Whitewater Stadium Lannion Leguer River Flow diversion, Tidal Linear 47 (9) 530 (15) 48°43′44″N 3°27′32″W / 48.729°N 3.459°W / 48.729; -3.459 (Lannion Whitewater Stadium)
1992 Parc des Eaux Vives Huningue Rhine River Flow diversion Loop 75 (14) 353 (10) 47°35′24″N 7°34′55″E / 47.590°N 7.582°E / 47.590; 7.582 (Parc des Eaux Vives)
1993 L'Argentière-la-Bessée L'Argentière-la-Bessée Durance River Natural flow Riverbed 47 (9) 2470 (70) 44°46′48″N 6°33′36″E / 44.780°N 6.560°E / 44.780; 6.560 (L'Argentière-la-Bessée)
1996 St Laurent Whitewater Stadium St Laurent Scarpe River Gravity, Pumped Linear 86 (16) 424 (12) 50°17′53″N 2°48′14″E / 50.298°N 2.804°E / 50.298; 2.804 (St Laurent Whitewater Stadium)
1997 Bourg-Saint-Maurice Bourg-Saint-Maurice Isère River Dam release Riverbed 184 (35) 883 (25) 45°36′11″N 6°45′58″E / 45.603°N 6.766°E / 45.603; 6.766 (Bourg-Saint-Maurice)
1997 Nancy Whitewater Stadium Nancy Meurthe River Flow diversion Linear 72 (14) 706 (20) 48°41′38″N 6°12′04″E / 48.694°N 6.201°E / 48.694; 6.201 (Nancy Whitewater Stadium)
1999 Cesson-Sévigné Whitewater Stadium Cesson-Sévigné Vilaine River Gravity, Pumped V-shape 39 (7) 424 (12) 48°06′54″N 1°36′25″W / 48.115°N 1.607°W / 48.115; -1.607 (Cesson-Sévigné Whitewater Stadium)
2000 Cergy Whitewater Stadium Cergy Oise River Pumped Loop 103 (20) 565 (16) 49°01′44″N 2°03′07″E / 49.029°N 2.052°E / 49.029; 2.052 (Cergy Whitewater Stadium)
2000 Millau Whitewater Course Millau Tarn River Flow diversion Linear 31.5 (6) 565 (16) 44°05′36″N 3°04′44″E / 44.0934°N 3.079°E / 44.0934; 3.079 (Millau Whitewater Course)
Saint-Pierre-de-Bœuf-Paradise Saint-Pierre-de-Bœuf Rhône River Flow diversion Linear 45°22′44″N 4°45′19″E / 45.379°N 4.7554°E / 45.379; 4.7554 (Saint-Pierre-de-Bœuf-Paradise)
Isle de la Serre Sault-Brénaz Rhône River Flow diversion S-shape 45°50′56″N 5°24′50″E / 45.849°N 5.414°E / 45.849; 5.414 (Isle de la Serre)
Slalom Ardèche Vallon-Pont-d'Arc Ardèche River Flow diversion Linear 44°23′56″N 4°23′06″E / 44.399°N 4.385°E / 44.399; 4.385 (Slalom Ardèche)
2008 Pau-Pyrénées Whitewater Stadium Pau Gave de Pau Flow diversion Loop 94 (18) 494 (14) 43°17′10″N 0°21′29″W / 43.286°N 0.358°W / 43.286; -0.358 (Pau-Pyrénées Whitewater Stadium)
2008 Châteauneuf Whitewater Sports Châteauneuf-sur-Cher Cher River Diversion, Pumped 110 meter Loop 58 (11) 459 (13) 46°51′22″N 2°19′12″E / 46.856°N 2.320°E / 46.856; 2.320 (Châteauneuf Whitewater Sports)
2013 Sainte Suzanne Whitewater Stadium Sainte Suzanne, Réunion Island Sainte Suzanne River Pumped 250 meter loop 63 (12) 420 (12) 20°54′47″S 55°36′54″E / 20.913°S 55.615°E / -20.913; 55.615 (Sainte Suzanne Whitewater Stadium)
2019 Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium Vaires-sur-Marne Marne River Pumped 300 meter Loop 2024 Olympics Paris
2022 Base Nautique: Natur'O Vive Épinal Moselle River Pumped S-shape 79 (15) 420 (12) 48°11′10″N 6°26′35″E / 48.186°N 6.443°E / 48.186; 6.443 (Épinal Pumped Slalom Course)
Germany
1971 Augsburg Eiskanal Augsburg Lech River Flow diversion Linear 79 (15) 353 (10) 1972 Olympics Munich
2006 Kanupark Markkleeberg Leipzig Markkleeberger See Pumped 2 Loops 111 (21) 494 (14)
Greece
2004 Heleniko Whitewater Stadium Athens Gulf of Athens Pumped Figure-8 618 (18) 2004 Olympics Athens
2008 Evinos River Slalom Course Nafpaktos Evinos River Diversion 520 meter Linear 53 (10) 530 (15) 38°27′14″N 21°42′29″E / 38.454°N 21.708°E / 38.454; 21.708 (Evinos River Slalom Course)
Italy
2007 Ivrea Whitewater Stadium Ivrea Dora Baltea River Flow diversion Linear 168 (32) 706 (20) 45°27′50″N 7°52′30″E / 45.464°N 7.875°E / 45.464; 7.875 (Ivrea Whitewater Stadium)
Japan
2019 Kasai Canoe Slalom Centre Tokyo Pumped Linear/Lift 103 (20) 424 (12) 2021 Olympics Tokyo
Macedonia
Skopje Slalom Canoeing Center Skopje Treska In stream, Dam release Linear 41°57′29″N 21°17′46″E / 41.958°N 21.296°E / 41.958; 21.296 (Skopje Slalom Canoeing Center)
Mexico
Union de Tula Union de Tula Rio Ayuquila Dam Release Altered stream 19°57′36″N 104°22′16″W / 19.960°N 104.371°W / 19.960; -104.371 (Union de Tula)
New Zealand
27 April 2016[5] Vector Wero Whitewater Park[6] Wiri, Auckland, New Zealand Pumped 79 (15) 36°59′53″S 174°53′17″E / 36.998°S 174.888°E / -36.998; 174.888 (Vector Wero Whitewater Park)
Poland
2003 Krakow-Kolna Canoe Slalom Course Kraków Vistula River Diversion Linear 50°01′55″N 19°49′30″E / 50.032°N 19.825°E / 50.032; 19.825 (Krakow-Kolna Canoe Slalom Course)
Russia
2008 Okulovka Whitewater Canal Okulovka, Novgorod Oblast Peretna River Dam release, Natural modified S-shape 100 (10) 309 (30) 58°24′40″N 33°17′47″E / 58.411°N 33.2965°E / 58.411; 33.2965 (Okulovka Whitewater Canal)
Slovakia
1978 Ondrej Cibak Whitewater Slalom Course Liptovský Mikuláš Vah River Diversion Parallel Linear 113 (21) 530 (15) 49°04′26″N 19°37′08″E / 49.074°N 19.619°E / 49.074; 19.619 (Ondrej Cibak Whitewater Slalom Course)
1996 Cunovo Water Sports Centre Bratislava Danube River Diversion 2 Loops 98 (19) 777 (22)
Slovenia
1990 Tacen Whitewater Course Ljubljana Sava River Dam Spillway, Tailrace Linear 989 (28)
Spain
1991 Segre Olympic Park La Seu d'Urgell Segre River Flow diversion, Pumped 2 Loops 114 (22) 618 (17.5) 1992 Olympics Barcelona
2008 El Canal de Aguas Bravas Zaragoza Ebro River Pumped Loop 101 (19) 424 (12) Expo 2008
2012 Parc del Mig Segre Ponts Segre River Dam release, Natural flow Linear 13 (4) 1272 (36) 41°55′22″N 1°10′58″E / 41.9228°N 1.1829°E / 41.9228; 1.1829 (Parc del Mig Segre) 300-meter course
Sweden
2019 Falu Vildvattenpark Falun [[]] Pumped 60°35′30″N 15°38′49″E / 60.591709°N 15.646838°E / 60.591709; 15.646838
United Arab Emirates
2012 Wadi Adventure Al Ain Pumped 3 loops 24°05′46″N 55°44′24″E / 24.096°N 55.740°E / 24.096; 55.740 (Wadi Adventure)
United Kingdom
1981[7] Canolfan Tryweryn Bala, Gwynedd Llyn Celyn / Afon Tryweryn Dam release Riverbed 350 (10) 52°56′49″N 3°39′05″W / 52.94705°N 3.65137°W / 52.94705; -3.65137 (Canolfan Tryweryn) 1000-meter course
1982 Cardington Slalom Course Bedford River Great Ouse Flow diversion Linear 60 (11) 530 (15) 52°07′37″N 0°25′44″W / 52.127061°N 0.428897°W / 52.127061; -0.428897 (Cardington Slalom Course) 150-meter course
1986 Holme Pierrepont National Watersports Centre Nottingham River Trent Flow diversion Linear 30 (5.7) 883 (25) 52°56′44″N 1°05′27″W / 52.94569°N 1.09074°W / 52.94569; -1.09074 (Holme Pierrepont National Watersports Centre) 500-meter course
1999 Nene Whitewater Centre Northampton River Nene Flow diversion, Pumped Loop 52°13′43″N 0°52′06″W / 52.2285°N 0.8684°W / 52.2285; -0.8684 (Nene Whitewater Centre) 300-meter course
1995 Tees Barrage International White Water Course Stockton-on-Tees River Tees Flow diversion, Pumped Loop 53 (10) 353 (10) 54°33′56″N 1°17′08″W / 54.56545°N 1.28565°W / 54.56545; -1.28565 (Tees Barrage International White Water Course) 250-meter course
2010 Cardiff International White Water Cardiff fully enclosed Pumped 1½ Loops 565 (16) 51°26′55″N 3°10′55″W / 51.44864°N 3.18186°W / 51.44864; -3.18186 (Cardiff International White Water) 250-meter course
2010 Lee Valley White Water Centre London Groundwater Pumped 2 Loops 88 (17) 460 (13) 2012 Olympics London
2014 Pinkston Watersports Glasgow Forth and Clyde Canal Pumped 2 Loops 79 (15) 247 (7) 55°52′23″N 4°14′56″W / 55.873°N 4.249°W / 55.873; -4.249 (Pinkston Watersports) 100-meter course
United States
1984 East Race Waterway South Bend IN St. Joseph River Flow diversion Linear 33 (6) 500 (14) 41°40′34″N 86°14′42″W / 41.676°N 86.245°W / 41.676; -86.245 (East Race Waterway)
1991 Dickerson Whitewater Course Dickerson MD Potomac River Pumped Linear 91 (17) 600 (17) Heated water
1996 Ocoee Whitewater Center Ducktown TN Ocoee River Dam release Riverbed 99 (19) 1560 (44) 1996 Olympics Atlanta
2006 U.S. National Whitewater Center Charlotte NC city tap water Pumped 2 Loops 113 (21) 550 (16)
2007 Adventure Sports Center International McHenry MD Deep Creek Lake Pumped Loop 91 (17) 550 (16)
2010 Marge Cline Whitewater Course[8] Yorkville, IL Fox River Flow Diversion Linear 41°38'33.8"N 88°26'35.1"W
2016 Riversport Rapids Oklahoma City OK city tap water Pumped 2 Loops 2028 Olympics Los Angeles
1974 Wausau Whitewater Park Wausau WI Wisconsin River Dam Release River Bed 650 44°57′27″N 89°37′59″W / 44.957495°N 89.633055°W / 44.957495; -89.633055 (Wausau Whitewater Park)
2023 Montgomery Whitewater Montgomery, AL Man made reservoir Pumped Dual Channel Whitewater Course and Flat Water
Note: Slope and Streamflow numbers refer only to the 300-meter section used for Olympic-style slalom training and competition.
  1. ^ William T. Endicott, Slalom E-Book, p2 Archived 29 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "Rapids of Rockies come to Herts for 2012 Olympic canoeists," Matthew Beard, London Evening Standard, 24 May, 2010 Archived 5 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine retrieved: 16 December 2010
  3. ^ "Brady's Lake Slalom Course Information". Paddle TAS. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  4. ^ "Gull River Whitewater Park". Whitewater Ontario River-Wiki. Whitewater Ontario. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
  5. ^ "Whitewater park opens in south Auckland". Auckland Council. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  6. ^ "Whitewater park years in the making opens". The New Zealand Herald. 26 April 2016. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  7. ^ "History of the National White Water Centre". National White Water Centre. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  8. ^ "Marge Cline Whitewater Course". Yorkville, IL. Retrieved 17 August 2020.