text: Sprint canoe was a demonstration sport at the 1924 Paris Olympics and became an Olympic discipline at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. When the International Canoe Federation was formed in 1946, it became the umbrella organization of all national canoe organizations worldwide.
  Hull design
  Hull design must meet different, often conflicting, requirements for speed, carrying capacity, maneuverability, and stability The canoe's hull speed can be calculated using the principles of ship resistance and propulsion.
  Length: although this is often stated by manufacturers as the overall length of the boat, what counts in performance terms is the length of the waterline, and more specifically its value relative to the displacement (the amount of water displaced by the boat) of the canoe, which is equal to the total weight of the boat and its contents because a floating body displaces its own weight in water. When a canoe is paddled through water, effort is required to push all the displaced water out of the way. Canoes are displacement hulls: the longer the waterline relative to its displacement, the faster it can be paddled. Among general touring canoeists,  is a popular length, providing a good compromise between capacity and cruising speed. Too large a canoe will simply mean extra work paddling at cruising speed.