How Technology Has Changed Olympic Rowing

Rowing is an old sport, but the equipment and the data have changed a lot. Technology has made boats faster and training more precise. It has not replaced the basics of technique and fitness.

Boats and materials

Racing shells were once built from wood. Modern boats are made from composites, mainly carbon fibre, which are light, stiff and strong. Stiffness helps transfer power from the rower to the water, and low weight reduces the load that crews have to move. Boats also have minimum weights set by World Rowing, so crews cannot simply keep getting lighter. See the evolution of rowing shells.

Hull shape has also been refined. Designers use tank testing and computer modelling to cut drag, and shapes vary by boat class. A boat built for a heavyweight eight is not the same as one for a lightweight single.

Riggers, slides and the sliding seat

Several smaller inventions changed the stroke. The sliding seat allows rowers to use their legs, which are the strongest muscles, and by the 1870s wheeled seats were lengthening the effective stroke. Riggers, the frames that hold the oarlocks, now come in several designs, from metal or carbon tubing to metal or carbon wings.

Oars and blades

Oar design has changed too. Modern blades have a shape that holds the water well through the stroke, and oars are made from carbon fibre. Big blades, which are shorter than traditional blades, with a larger spoon area and an asymmetric shape, came onto the American rowing scene through Concept2 in the autumn of 1991. The British company Hi Lock claimed to have started the development, so credit is disputed.

Choosing the right oar and blade shape matters, and our guide to how to choose a rowing blade covers the basics.

Sensors and data

Many elite crews use sensors on the oar gates, the footplates or the seat to measure force, angle and timing. Boat-mounted GPS devices record speed and stroke rate. Coaches use the data to see how well a crew moves together. Rowers at any level can use stroke rate and split in the same way. See measuring your results.

A coach reviewing data might look at the shape of the force curve at the oar, how early each rower gets the blade in at the catch, and whether the boat accelerates or stalls between strokes. A crew whose force curves match and whose catches are in time tends to move faster than one with a few strong rowers and a lot of variation.

Video analysis

Video lets coaches slow down a stroke and compare rowers side by side. Phones now make this accessible to club rowers. Filming yourself on the erg is a cheap way to find technique faults. See common rowing technique faults.

Indoor rowing

Erg monitors give a lot of data, including pace, power, stroke rate and drag factor. Many rowers use heart rate monitors and apps to go with it. The Concept2 erg has been a standard training and testing tool in rowing for decades. See the best apps for indoor rowing, how the Concept2 changed rowing and drag factor explained.

Drones and cameras

Cameras on launches, drones and fixed track cameras help broadcasters, and some coaches use drone footage to see crew alignment from above. Their value to a club is mostly in technique feedback rather than speed.

What a club rower can use

Technology	What it does	Cost and effort
Phone video	Shows technique faults	Free
Stroke rate and split	Tracks pace on and off the water	Low
Heart rate strap	Monitors training intensity	Low to moderate
GPS speed and rate monitor	Gives on-water data	Moderate
Erg log or app	Keeps a record of every session	Low

Limits of technology

Technology can only help if the basics are in place. A good stroke, a strong aerobic base and a crew that works together come first. Also, rules limit what equipment is allowed in competition, so some new ideas are banned from racing even if they would be faster. Under World Rowing’s rules, no one outside the boat may communicate with a crew by electronic means during racing, the data shown to a crew in the boat is limited to an approved list, and structures such as riblets that alter the water flow at the hull are not allowed.

What to take from it

• Use data to learn, not to obsess. A few numbers consistently tracked beat a mass of data you never use.
• Film your technique. It costs nothing.
• Get the basics right before you buy kit.
• A coach who understands the data is worth more than the device.

For more, see the Olympic rowing hub.