Canadian Singles, 500 metres, Men

In addition to being the most recent Olympic runner-up, Mykhailo Slivinsky of the Soviet Union had won the C-1 500 at the last three World Championships and, competing under the banner of the Unified Team, was considered the favorite to take gold in the event at the 1992 Summer Olympics. Defending Olympic champion Olaf Heukrodt of Germany, who was also the 1989 World runner-up and 1991 bronze medalist, would certainly be among his challengers, as would 1988 Olympic bronze medalist Martin Marinov of Bulgaria’s successor, Nikolay Buhalov. Buhalov was not only the most recent World runner-up, but was the 1988 Olympic bronze medalist in the K-1 1000. Cuba’s Armando Silega was the reigning Pan American champion.

Slivinsky not only defeated Heukrodt in the opening heats, but did so in Olympic record time, while Buhalov and Canada’s Steve Giles took the other heats. Silega, meanwhile, was last in Buhalov’s heat and survived the repêchage only to be eliminated in Slivinsky’s semi-final heat. Heukrodt came second to Buhalov in the other heat, while Giles only survived by being the faster of the two fifth-place finishers. Slivinsky and Buhalov battled down to the line, but the Bulgarian was just able to outperform the favorite and take the gold medal by 0.25 seconds, leaving silver to the former Soviet. Heukrodt, meanwhile, settled for bronze, while Buhalov would go on to upset another former Soviet favorite the following day by winning the C-1 1000 ahead of Ivans Klementjevs of Latvia.