Olympics

Canada sending men's kayak K2 200-metres crew to Rio

Canoe Kayak Canada will send a men's K2 200-metres crew to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

Spot opened due to doping infraction by Russian athlete

Canada's Mark de Jonge, right, and Pierre-Luc Poulin paddle their way to bronze at the 2015 Pan Am Games. (Aaron Lynett / The Canadian Press)

Canoe Kayak Canada will send a men's K2 200-metres crew to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

The International Canoe Federation announced Friday that Canada will have two additional athlete quota spots for the sprint event following the suspension of an athlete in a Russian crew due to doping infractions.

The Canadian crew to compete in the men's K2 200m is yet to be determined.

The ICF ruled that the quota spots would be allocated to the next nation that has not yet qualified. Sweden was the next ranked nation but declined the spots. Canada was the next in line based on the 2015 world championships results where the Canadian crew placed ninth last August. A top six finish was needed to qualify directly.

At the Pan American Continental Qualifier in May, the Canadian crew had a second chance to qualify but Brazil edged them out by 0.07 of a second.

The Canadian Press