OLYMPICS DAILY REPORT

Whitewater slalom kayaker Scott Shipley, ranked No. 1 in the world, likes his gold-medal chances because he likes the course.

The whitewater kayakers will compete on the Ocoee River in the Cherokee National Forest in Tennessee, about 180 miles northwest of Atlanta.

“[The slalom course is on] a natural river bed, and I like the feel of a natural river,” said Shipley, whose father, Dick, was a national team canoeist in the 1960s.

“We grow up training on natural rivers, and they have a different feel from the man-made courses, which are usually just channels with the water forced through. Here, it’s the natural river bed that’s just been narrowed.”