Kayak Singles, 1,000 metres, Men
| Date | 12 August 1948 |
|---|---|
| Status | Olympic |
| Location | Henley Royal Regatta Course, Henley-on-Thames |
| Participants | 15 from 15 countries |
Due to World War II, there had been no recent Canoe Sprint World Championships, which, at the time, was the best predictor of Olympic success in the sport. Gert Fredriksson of Sweden, however, had gained a reputation for his success in smaller European events and was considered the favorite in both this event and the K-1 10000, which he had won the day before. Despite the time that had elapsed, three participants had won medals at the previous Olympics or World Championships: Wim van der Kroft of the Netherlands (bronze in the 1936 K-2 1000), Henri Eberhardt of France (silver in the 1936 Folding K-1 10000), and Czesław Sobieraj of Poland (silver in the 1938 K-1 10000). The opening heats were won by Fredriksson and Denmark’s Frederik Kobberup Andersen, but the former was clearly the star of the tournament and went on to win this event by a margin of over 6½ seconds ahead of Andersen, who took silver. Eberhardt, meanwhile, battled Norway’s Hans Martin Gulbrandsen to the finish line and captured bronze with only 0.3 seconds to spare.
| Pos | Number | Competitor | NOC | R1 | Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 47 | Gert Fredriksson |  SWE | 4:51.9 (1 h1) | 4:33.2 (1) | Gold | ||
| 2 | 38 | Frederik Kobberup Andersen |  DEN | 4:40.9 (1 h2) | 4:39.9 (2) | Silver | ||
| 3 | 40 | Henri Eberhardt |  FRA | 4:45.5 (3 h2) | 4:41.4 (3) | Bronze | ||
| 4 | 45 | Hans Martin Gulbrandsen |  NOR | 4:45.4 (2 h2) | 4:41.7 (4) | |||
| 5 | 42 | Wim van der Kroft |  NED | 4:46.2 (4 h2) | 4:43.5 (5) | |||
| 6 | 39 | Harry Åkerfelt |  FIN | 4:52.0 (2 h1) | 4:44.2 (6) | |||
| 7 | 37 | Luboš Vambera |  TCH | 4:52.8 (4 h1) | 4:44.3 (7) | |||
| 8 | 34 | Walter Piemann |  AUT | 4:52.2 (3 h1) | 4:50.3 (8) | |||
| 5 h1 r1/2 | 35 | Julien Bogaert |  BEL | 5:00.1 (5 h1) | – | |||
| 5 h2 r1/2 | 46 | Czesław Sobieraj |  POL | 4:46.5 (5 h2) | – | |||
| 6 h1 r1/2 | 48 | Hans Straub |  SUI | 5:05.5 (6 h1) | – | |||
| 6 h2 r1/2 | 49 | Thomas Horton |  USA | 4:58.0 (6 h2) | – | |||
| 7 h1 r1/2 | 44 | Marcel Lentz |  LUX | 5:10.8 (7 h1) | – | |||
| 7 h2 r1/2 | 43 | János Toldi |  HUN | 4:59.8 (7 h2) | – | |||
| 8 h2 r1/2 | 41 | Norman Dobson |  GBR | 5:00.1 (8 h2) | – | |||
| 36 | Henry Harper |  CAN | – (DNS h1) | – |
Round One
| Date | 12 August 1948 — 9:30 |
|---|---|
| Format | Top four in each heat advanced to the final. |
Heat #1
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | Gert Fredriksson | SWE | 4:51.9 | ||
| 2 | – | Harry Åkerfelt | FIN | 4:52.0 | ||
| 3 | – | Walter Piemann | AUT | 4:52.2 | ||
| 4 | – | Luboš Vambera | TCH | 4:52.8 | ||
| 5 | – | Julien Bogaert | BEL | 5:00.1 | ||
| 6 | – | Hans Straub | SUI | 5:05.5 | ||
| 7 | – | Marcel Lentz | LUX | 5:10.8 | ||
| – | Henry Harper | CAN | – |
Heat #2
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | Frederik Kobberup Andersen | DEN | 4:40.9 | ||
| 2 | – | Hans Martin Gulbrandsen | NOR | 4:45.4 | ||
| 3 | – | Henri Eberhardt | FRA | 4:45.5 | ||
| 4 | – | Wim van der Kroft | NED | 4:46.2 | ||
| 5 | – | Czesław Sobieraj | POL | 4:46.5 | ||
| 6 | – | Thomas Horton | USA | 4:58.0 | ||
| 7 | – | János Toldi | HUN | 4:59.8 | 1 | |
| 8 | – | Norman Dobson | GBR | 5:00.1 |
Final Round
| Date | 12 August 1948 — 19:00 |
|---|
| Pos | Lane | Competitor | NOC | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | – | Gert Fredriksson | SWE | 4:33.2 | ||
| 2 | – | Frederik Kobberup Andersen | DEN | 4:39.9 | ||
| 3 | – | Henri Eberhardt | FRA | 4:41.4 | ||
| 4 | – | Hans Martin Gulbrandsen | NOR | 4:41.7 | ||
| 5 | – | Wim van der Kroft | NED | 4:43.5 | ||
| 6 | – | Harry Åkerfelt | FIN | 4:44.2 | ||
| 7 | – | Luboš Vambera | TCH | 4:44.3 | ||
| 8 | – | Walter Piemann | AUT | 4:50.3 |