The 19 competitors each took two preliminary runs through the whitewater slalom course. The top 15 kayakers by combined time from the two runs advanced to the semifinal. The top 10 times from the single semifinal run determined the finalists. Ranking and medals are based on the combined time of the semifinal run and the final run. The preliminary runs were raced on August 17 and the semifinal and final runs were on August 18.