At the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, seven events in sprint canoe racing were contested at Lake Albano. Four changes were done to the program. First, the 10000 metre events that were raced from 1936 to 1956 were permanently dropped from the Olympic program, leaving all races at the 500 metre and 1000 metre distances. Second, the women's K-2 500 m event was added to the program, as was a men's K-1 4 × 500 m relay event (though for these games). Third, event timing in 1/100ths of a second at these games. Fourth, a repechage system was introduced that was used to the 1996 games in Atlanta at Lake Lanier.

Medal table

Medal summary Men's events C-1 1000 m C-2 1000 m K-1 1000 m K-1 4 × 500 m relayDieter KrauseGünther PerlebergPaul LangeFriedhelm WentzkeImre SzöllősiImre KemeczeiAndrás SzenteGyörgy MészárosErik HansenHelmuth NyborgArne HøyerErling JessenK-2 1000 m

Women's events K-1 500 metresK-2 500 metres

Participating nations

References 1960 Summer Olympics official report Volume 2, Part 1. pp. 248–70.