Canoe Slalom is an extreme sport where the the aim is to negotiate a course on a section of fast flowing white water in the fastest time possible. The course is defined by 'gates' which consist of two poles that hang just above the water. 

There are two different colours of gate; red and green. Green ones you must simply paddle down through and red ones you must come back upstream through them. If you touch a gate 2 seconds is added to your raw time and if you miss a gate, 50 seconds is added to your time.

 

The course is usually around 100 seconds long and covers a distance of 250-400 metres. The number of gates in a course can vary between 18 and 25, of which 6 must be upstreams (red gates).