| Host city |  Poznań, Poland on Lake Malta |
|---|---|
← 1989
1991 →
| |
The 1990 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships were held in Poznań, Poland, on Lake Malta.
The men's competition consisted of eight Canadian (single paddle, open boat) and nine kayak events. Five events were held for the women, all in kayak.
This was the 23rd championships in the canoe sprint.
| Event | Gold | Time | Silver | Time | Bronze | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K-1 500 m |  Josefa Idem (ITA) |
 Yvonne Knudsen (DEN) |
 Katrin Borchert (FRG) |
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| K-1 5000 m | Katrin Borchert (FRG) |
Josefa Idem (ITA) |
 Irina Salomykova (URS) |
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| K-2 500 m |  East GermanyRamona Portwich Anke von Seck |
 HungaryÉva Dónusz Erika Mészáros |
West Germany Katrin Borchert Monika Bunke |
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| K-2 5000 m | East Germany Ramona Portwich Anke von Seck |
Hungary Éva Dónusz Erika Mészáros |
Soviet Union Katarin Koniovskala Nelly Korbukova |
|||
| K-4 500 m | East Germany Silke Bull Ramona Portwich Heike Rabenow Anke von Seck |
Hungary Éva Dónusz Henriette Huber Rita Kőbán Erika Mészáros |
West Germany Marcella Bednar Katrin Borchert Monika Bunke Catrin Fischer |
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soviet Union | 9 | 2 | 6 | 17 |
| 2 | East Germany | 5 | 3 | 4 | 12 |
| 3 | Hungary | 2 | 6 | 3 | 11 |
| 4 | Denmark | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Italy | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
| 6 | West Germany | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| 7 |  France | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 8 |  Great Britain | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
 Norway | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 10 |  United States | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 11 | Poland | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
 Romania | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
| 13 |  Czechoslovakia | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 New Zealand | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 15 |  Bulgaria | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 16 |  Australia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 Sweden | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Totals (17 entries) | 22 | 22 | 22 | 66 | |
