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Rowing Sports

Rowing is a sport held on the surface of the water, where athletes propel a boat using oars. Rowing as a sport was developed in 18th century London. There were races between professional watermen on the river Thames.

Rowing may be held indoors, like on artificial lakes; or outdoors on rivers, canals, and oceans. The members of each team vary on the boat class, there’s the one for individuals, such as the single scull, and ones for eight athletes called coxed eight.

Rowing has two forms, sweep in which each rower has one oar held with two hands; and skulling in which each rower has to oars, there’s one in each hand. The boats used are racing boats, which are also called shells, they are long, narrow and semi-circular. The oars used are long (about 250-300 cm), and have a flat end which is also called the blade.

Rowing Variations

• Sculling Rowing — a form of rowing, in which a person uses oars, one in each hand, to propel a single or double scull rowing boat.
• Sweep Rowing — each rower has just one oar which is maneuvered with both hands to propel the boat.
• Indoor Rowing — competitions performed on a rowing machine which simulates the on water action.
• Coastal (Offshore) Rowing — a type of rowing performed on open water, requiring wider and more robust boats than those used on rivers and lakes.
• Ocean Rowing — involves rowing races across entire seas and oceans.
• Surfboat Rowing — a team of riders compete using surfboats on a course out and back through the surf.

Paddling Sports

• Canoeing — paddle sport in which the rider kneels or sits facing forward in a canoe.
• Outrigger Canoeing — racing using a type of canoe featuring one or more lateral support floats known as outriggers, which are fastened to one or both sides of the main hull.
• Kayaking — boat races using a small, narrow boat propelled by means of a double-bladed paddle
• Surf Kayaking — involves surfing in the ocean using a kayak
• Playboating — a whitewater sport in which athletes on kayaks or canoes perform various moves in a fixed place called the playspot.
• Whitewater Slalom — is a kayaking and canoeing sport in which athletes use a kayak or canoe to navigate through a course that consists of hanging gates on river rapids.
• Dragon Boat Racing — a paddling sport using a dragon boat.
• Canoe Polo — like polo on water, the objective is to score by throwing or hitting a ball through a goal suspended two meters above the water.

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Related Pages

• Rowing at the Olympics
• 2000m Rowing Ergo Fitness Test
• About Paddling Sports
• Complete list of sports
• The Encyclopedia of Sports