Going the New Distance

This year’s Paris Games will be the last for Olympic rowing as we know it. Lightweight rowing will be removed from the Olympic program, and coastal sprints will debut in 2028.

Because of local limitations in Los Angeles, the traditional Olympic race distance will be shortened to 1,500 meters. This change will be welcomed probably by some sports politicians and will serve as a test for how the rowing community and television viewers accept the break with tradition.

It’s reasonable to question the value of building a rowing facility with a 2,000-meter course when a 1,500-meter or even 1,000-meter course might do. But then, if it’s all about money, why not build cheaper 25-meter swimming pools and 75-meter running tracks?

In the early days of the Olympic movement, rowing competitions were held over different distances depending on local circumstances, but by and large, the traditional rowing race has been 2,000 meters, a distance that has been standardized for women and juniors (or U19 athletes, as they’re called now).

World Rowing (formerly FISA) sent experts around the world to promote the construction of 2,000-meter courses, and excellent 2K rowing facilities exist in every member country, where local, national, and international regattas are held successfully.

Shortening races to 1,500 meters will have a significant impact on training and how it’s conducted, since current physiological research is based on the traditional race duration. In ideal racing conditions, the fastest boat, the men’s eight, will complete the new Olympic distance in about four minutes. The slowest boat, the women’s single, will clock in at about 5:30. The proportion of anaerobic energy supply in 2K races is only about 10 to 20 percent; I suspect that it will increase probably by 10 percent in races that are 500 meters shorter. Training must reflect this change.

Race strategy must change also. While we currently see a U-shaped progression of power and boat speed, athletes will have to adopt a more “fly and die” approach, which means the start and first 500 meters will become even more crucial. Rowers will have to be very powerful and fine-tuned technically to achieve speeds in top races necessary for victory.

Training will need to become even more polarized. High- intensity training will be maximized, while low-intensity long-distance training will need to be planned carefully to build an aerobic base and support recovery. Overall training volume may not change much, but we will see longer rest periods with minimal effort between high-intensity sessions.

Strength training also will need to reflect the new emphasis on the start and early sprint. Fast movements with relatively high loads will take center stage. Boats and oars will need to be as stiff as possible to transfer high forces efficiently, and riggers will need to be reinforced.

Athletes and coaches need time to prepare for these changes and the opportunity to experiment, learn, and adapt, ideally by competing over the new Olympic distance. The qualifying races for the 2028 Olympic Games, of course, should be held on 1,500-meter courses, and it makes sense to stage international races over the same distance in the 2026 season, at the latest. [Editor’s note: World Rowing has stated that all evnts will remain 2,000 meters.]

Obviously, adapting to these changes applies only to the few rowers with Olympic ambitions, but there are many more rowers who want to compete for a place on their country’s national team. Again, the national qualification regattas should be over the shorter race distance. Otherwise, national teams could select the wrong rowers for their Olympic teams. This could cause headaches for university and club rowers preparing for national regattas, which are likely to continue at 2K.

World Rowing should be very cautious about what happens to race lengths after the 2028 Olympics. Already, rowing’s governing body has dealt a fatal blow to lightweight rowing, at least internationally, and it remains to be seen how this will affect rowing in general and club and college rowing in particular.  Volker Nolte