What decides the finish in canoe sprint?
B · Beginner · The race · 4 of 5The bow of the boat. A boat has finished "when its bow crosses the finish line with all crew members in it". At world championships the order is decided by a photo finish. Times are recorded to a thousandth of a second and published to a hundredth.
How it works
- The bow: "The boat has finished the race when its bow crosses the finish line with all crew members in it."
- The judges: the finish line judges decide the order in which the boats arrive.
- Photo finish: at world championships it decides the order, and it overrides what the judges saw.
- Timing: recorded in thousandths and published in hundredths of a second.
- Very close finals: in finals only, a boat within 5 thousandths of a second of a faster boat is given the same time and position.
- Same time: boats that cross together are given the same place.
- Split by the photo: if the photo can separate two boats shown with the same time in hundredths, the results page must say so.
- After the line: athletes must leave the course and not disturb the next race.
- Boat control: boats picked by the committee go straight to be weighed and measured.
The glossary has the photo finish and the finish and dead heat (sprint) entry.
Tricky cases
A paddler falls out a metre before the line and the empty boat crosses first. Has it won?
No. The bow must cross with all crew members in the boat.
Two boats are 3 thousandths of a second apart in a final. Who wins?
Both. In finals a gap of 5 thousandths or less gives the slower boat the same time and position as the faster one.
The judges say lane 4 won and the photo shows lane 5. Which stands?
The photo. The judges compare their decision with the photo finish, and the photo is decisive.
Do the paddlers throw the boat forward at the line?
Yes, that is a known technique. The rule on the bow is why it works, though the rules do not describe it.
Why the rule exists
Boats arrive side by side at more than 20 kilometres an hour, and the eye cannot split them. A fixed point on the boat and a camera on the line give an answer that does not depend on where a judge was sitting. The 5 thousandths rule accepts that below a certain gap even the camera is not a fair judge.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| ICF rules | The bow, with the crew aboard | SP 10.6.1 |
| World championships | Two sets of photo-finish equipment, and the 5 thousandths rule in finals | SP 13.8.1 |
| If the electronic timing fails | The finish line judges time by stopwatch | SP 13.8.7 |
| Canoe slalom | The athlete's body, not the bow, stops the clock | ../slalom/ set |
From the rule book
International Canoe Federation, Canoe Sprint Competition Rules 2025, Articles 10.6.1 to 10.6.5, 11.1 and 13.8. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: ICF Canoe Sprint Competition Rules (PDF).