First artificial canoe slalom course opens in Tokyo

TOKYO Japan's first artificial canoe slalom course, built for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, is now providing the public with whitewater rafting adventures near the heart of the capital.

Since the Olympics in 2021, the Canoe Slalom Centre near Tokyo Bay in the capital's Edogawa Ward has been used primarily as a training base for canoeists but opened to the public in July. Urban fun-seekers can ride rafts down the about 200 meter long rapids with their 4.5 meter height variation as sea breezes blow across the course.

Yuri Arai, 11, who was visiting Machida from the suburb of Tokyo, said with a smile: It was more intense than I expected. I got soaked, but I loved it. Reservations are necessary for the rafting experience, and almost every slot in August is already booked. The center is considering accepting visitors in September. A facility representative said they were looking to use the Olympic legacy facility in multiple ways.