Qualifying to row at the Olympic Games

Just outside of Munich, Germany, at the venue of the 1972 Olympic Games, rowing athletes are currently gathering for the 2007 World Rowing Championships. But this year, becoming a World Champion rower will not be the only thing on their mind. Rowers will be looking further into the future – their thoughts will include 2008 Beijing Olympic qualification.

This year’s World Rowing Championships doubles as the main Olympic qualification regatta making it one of the most exciting events in the four-year Olympic rowing cycle.

So when you sit back to watch the action unfold just remember that the athlete looking like the happiest person in the world for finishing fifth in the B Final of the lightweight men’s four, has every reason to be the happiest person in the world.

This is why:

In each event there is predetermined number of places that will qualify. This is in line with the total number of athletes allowed to compete at the Olympic Games in rowing and is decided by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Every Olympic sport has these stated criteria. In rowing the total number of athletes is 550.

At Munich, in many events, 11 is the magic number. The top 11 boats in the men’s single, pair, double, four, quad and the lightweight men’s four and double will qualify. There are seven spots for the men’s eight. Amongst the women’s events the women’s single has nine spots, the women’s pair, double and lightweight double, eight spots. The women’s quad seven spots and the women’s eight five spots.

There is one catch, however, for athletes who qualify at Munich. It is their country that qualifies the boat rather than the individual athlete. The rower must then retain their spot on the national team and in that boat to be the chosen one for next year’s Olympics.

Continental qualification regattas are also held to encourage athletes from countries that are less developed in rowing. The African regatta has already been raced in July in Algeria. The Latin America regatta will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in November and the Asian regatta will be in Shanghai, China in April 2008.

At the continental regattas the only events open to qualification are the men’s and women’s single and the lightweight men’s and women’s double sculls.

Boats from any nation may also make another attempt to qualify a month before the Olympic Games in Lucerne, Switzerland, in 2008. But this is seen as less desirable being so close to the Olympics and ruthless in its limited number of spots, only between 1 and 3 in each event.

This year will also be the first time adaptive rowing undergoes the qualification system. Rowing will debut at the 2008 Paralympic Games and, with this, adaptive rowers will be aiming to qualify their boat for next year.

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