Welcome to the website of Ancient Olympic Games. We provide various information and facts related to the ancient world famous games and other international sports competitions. In this page we have thrown light on Rowing.
Rowing is a world famous game in which the athletes race against each other on water- Rivers, lakes or on the ocean. The boats are driven in by the reaction forces on the oar blades that are pushed against the water. This is a recreational sport emphasizing on learning the techniques that are required and competitive where the entire fitness plays a crucial role. It is one of the oldest forms of Olympic sports.
To look back in history, it has been found that rowing has been a male conquered sport. Even though the root of rowing as a sport in the modern Olympics can be found to the original 1896 games in Athens, it was not until the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal that women got the approval to participate.
In the Summer Olympics, rowing was included as a part of the competition since the 1900. The game was included on the program at the 1896 Summer Olympics but due to bad weather, the game was cancelled. Earlier only men were permissible to compete until the event for women were introduced at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. In 1996, lightweight rowing events were set up to the games.
The qualifying for the rowing events is under the authority of the International Rowing Federation (FISA). The Olympic Games introduced a competition for women's rowing in 1976. In the present days, women take part in six of the 14 medal events.
Rowing competitions at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing took place from August 9 to August 17, at the Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park