Olympic Rowing

Racing shells at the Head of the Charles Regatta - 2009

Time to join in on the Olympic fever that has been gripping us all. The London games are turning out to be an incredible series of games on all levels and the British people should be proud of the bang up job they have done, it certainly looks worth all the inconvenience Londoners have had to endure in preparation. 

There has been so much attention focused on swimming and gymnastics, as usual, that I struggle to keep up with what has been happening on the water as rowing gets lower billing with the media. I want to take a moment and touch on a couple facts about rowing and the Olympics that you may not know. 

Pedigree

Rowing was one of the original 10 Olympic sports. In the 1896 Olympic games, events were held in Athletics, Cycling, Fencing, Gymnastics, Shooting, Swimming, Tennis, Weightlifting, and Wrestling. Rowing was on the docket but events were cancelled because of weather. The first Olympic rowing competitions were successfully held in 1900 in Paris.

Rowing is a sport with serious history under its belt. The Doggett's Coat and Badge sculling race in London has been held every year, without interruption since 1715, making it the oldest running athletic competition, in the world! In fact, rowing competitions are often amongst the oldest running events of any sports. Example, the Harvard-Yale Race (or Yale-Harvard Race, depending on your preference) is the oldest collegiate competition in the US and dates to 1852.

Longevity

Olympic rowers have incredible longevity as athletes. While Michael Phelps has dominated the last four years with the medals he has accrued, two Olympic rowers, Sir Stephen Geoffrey Redgrave of Great Britain and Elisabeta Lipa of Romania both achieved records that put Phelp's performances in perspective. Sir Redgrave won 6 medals in 5 different Olympic games from 1984-2000, and Lipa won 8 medals in 6 different Olympic games! They both earned Olympic medals over a 20 year period.

Lung Capacity

Olympic level rowers have stunning lung capacity. Matt Pinsent had once held the record for lung capacity of ANY athlete at 8.5L until Peter Reed surpassed him with his measurement of 9.38L! The average male lung capacity is 5.8L. By contrast, Lance Armstrong's capacity is 7L.

World Records

There are no world records in rowing. During the fevered races in the Olympic aquatic centers we can often see yellow stripes struggling to keep pace with the fastest swimmers. Announcers breathlessly urge us to the edge of our seats to see if we are witnessing not just a stunning victory, but the fall of yet anther record to superior sport science and athletic prowess. Not so with rowing. Rowing is so heavily impacted by wind, temperature, surface conditions, and water current that no two times in different events can ever be compared, at least not evenly enough for a world record to stand.