Canoe Sprint at the 1984 Summer Olympics

The 1984 canoeing (and rowing) competition was held on Lake Casitas in the Las Padres National Forest, in Ventura County, California. Lake Casitas is an artificial lake that was created in 1959 with the construction of the Casitas Dam on Coyote Creek. The program for 1984 was the same for men as it has been from 1976-2008, with nine events, five in kayaks and four in Canadian canoes. Women first competed in Olympic canoeing in 1948 with a kayak singles event, adding a kayak doubles in 1960. In 1984 women were finally given a third event with the addition of kayak fours. All events were considered canoe sprint events.

The 1984 canoeing events were severely affected by the Soviet-led boycott as canoeing is primarily a European sport, especially popular in Eastern Europe. In their absence, New Zealand’s Ian Ferguson starred by winning three kayak gold medals, and Sweden’s Agneta Andersson won two gold medals among the women.