The Thames is one of the main rowing rivers in Europe. Several annual competitions are held along its course, including the Henley Royal Regatta, The Boat Race and other long-distance events, called Head of the River races (Heads). As well as the events held on the river itself, there are other, purpose-built rowing facilities along the course of the river, such as Dorney Lake between Slough and Windsor, Berkshire, which was a 2012 Summer Olympic venue and is now an international Cup, standard-distance rowing lake hosting the three main annual entry regattas for Henley: still named Marlow (International), Wallingford and Metropolitan. Other rowing lakes near the Thames are the Redgrave Pinsent Rowing Lake between Reading and Henley used by the Great Britain squad and Royal Albert Dock near North Woolwich, London.

History

Rowing races on the River Thames have been documented as early as 1725, and Henley-on-Thames was the venue for the 1908 London Olympics rowing races.

Contemporary events, groups and modern history

The sport and recreational/touring rowing takes place on the Tideway and on the 45 separate lock reaches on the non-tidal section. The river hosts a televised succession of races on which bets are placed – traditionally named The Boat Race and for some decades a men-only event – it is now the (Oxford and Cambridge) Men's and Women's Boat Race on the cusp of March and April. Further up-river, the Henley Royal Regatta, held over six days (Tuesday to Sunday) ending on the first weekend in July is one of several other rowing events held along approximately the same course on that same stretch of the Thames. At least 12 head races are held every year on the long, tidal course of the Boat Race, known as the Championship Course – including the Head of the River Race which is the weekend before the Boat Race, attracting hundreds of racing shell eights. Head races are, by definition, long time trials. Twice as many heads are held on long, narrower reaches of the canalised inland river. Many clubs and a few schools and village fair committees as far inland as Oxford host shorter races – regattas – in warmer months. Event-raced, self-propelled boats on the Thames chiefly comprise (Olympic) racing shells. Most events are for racing shells.

Traditional rowing boats

A Thames, or English, punt is a long slender vessel. It sees very few and often intermittent or extremely local races. Its use is almost wholly recreational. Thames skiffs are the mainstay of several regattas and six extant clubs (see below). A large version with a canvas is called a camping skiff, featuring in major modern travelogues and historically in Three Men in a Boat, published in 1889, a humorous account by English writer Jerome K. Jerome of a two-week boating holiday on this river from Kingston upon Thames to Oxford and back to Kingston. Other rowing typically takes place in dragon boats, dongolas, dinghies, inflatable rafts and larger skiffs known as cutters.

Regattas

Thames rowing regattas are almost all between April and the first week of September. All but the most prestigious are considered short. They are raced side-by-side. They are in categories for competitors and boat types: each consists of heats (mostly knock-out tournaments, that is, without repechages) and final. Many regatta days are split into two or more divisions so that competitors can enter two categories – such as a large and small boat, sweep-oar or sculling. Where category events have a cup it belongs to the regatta and is sometimes engraved with winners' club or composite clubs' name (or engraved on metal set around a plinth or set of plinths). Winners receive a medal – or tankard, called by rowers a "pot". A regatta in racing shell rowing has umpires/stewards who enforce preparedness (race registration, safety and marshalling time/location rules), false start and lane rules using a motor launch and the wearing of club kit. "General" refers to a mix of skiffing, cutters, dinghies and other rowed craft.

Head of the River and long-distance events

Head of the River races (Heads) and other long-distance events dominate the winter months, and are usually processional (time trials): competitors set off at time intervals, and results are on the basis of comparative timing or by bumping (catching up the boat in front). Many of them on the Tideway are raced over The Championship Course, and apart from the Boat Race and Wingfield Sculls, may begin from Mortlake (west) or Putney (east) whichever tide matches the middle of the day or other central racing hours.

Other events

Clubs

Rowing on the river is generally organised through clubs based on the Thames, which include the following.

Competing many times per year

• Abingdon Rowing Club Abingdon RC Blade.svg • Auriol Kensington Rowing ClubH Auriol Kensington Blade.svg • Barn Elms Rowing Club Barn Elms Rowing Club rowing blade.gif • Barnes Bridge Ladies Rowing ClubCh Barnes Bridge Ladies Rowing Club.svg • Burway Rowing Club, (Laleham) Burway Rowing Club rowing blade.gif • City of Oxford Rowing Club City of Oxford Rowing Club Rowing Blade.svg • Curlew Rowing ClubG Curlew Rowing Club rowing blade.gif • Cygnet Rowing ClubCh Cygnet Rowing Club rowing blade.gif • East India Club Rowing SectionCh • Eton Excelsior Rowing Club Eton Excelsior RC Rowing Blade.svg • Falcon Boat Club (Oxford) Falcon Boat Club blade.svg • Fulham Reach Boat Club Fulham Reach boat club blade.svg • Furnivall Sculling ClubH Furnivall Sculling Club rowing blade.gif • Globe Rowing ClubG Globe RC blade.svg • Goring Gap Rowing Club Goring Gap Rowing Club rowing blade.gif • Henley Rowing Club Henley RC Blade.svg • HSBC Rowing Club HSBC Rowing Club Rowing Blade.svg • Kingston Rowing Club Kingston_Rowing_Club_Blade.svg • Leander Club Leander Club Rowing Blade.svg • London Rowing Club London Rowing Club Rowing Blade.svg • Maidenhead Rowing Club Maidenhead Rowing Club Rowing Blade.png • Marlow Rowing Club Marlow Rowing Club rowing blade.gif • Molesey Boat Club Rowing Blade Black.svg • Mortlake Anglian & Alpha Boat ClubCh Mortlake Anglian and Alpha Boat Club rowing blade.gif • Parr's Priory Rowing Club Parrs Priory Rowing Club rowing blade.gif • Poplar Blackwall and District Rowing Club Poplar Blackwall and District Rowing Club rowing blade.gif • Putney Town Rowing ClubM Putney Town Rowing Club Rowing Blade.svg • Quintin Boat ClubCh Quintin Boat Club rowing blade.gif • Reading Rowing Club Reading Rowing Club rowing blade.gif • Sons of the ThamesH Sons of the Thames Rowing Blade.svg • Staines Boat Club Staines Boat Club Rowing Blade.svg • Thames Rowing Club Thames Rowing Club Rowing Blade.svg • Thames Tradesmen's Rowing ClubCh TTRC blade.jpg • Tideway Scullers SchoolCh Tideway Scullers School Rowing Blade.svg • Twickenham Rowing Club Twickenham Rowing Club Rowing Blade.svg • Upper Thames Rowing Club Rowing Blade White.svg • Vesta Rowing Club Vesta Rowing Blade.svg • Walbrook Rowing Club, (Teddington) Walbrook Rowing Club Rowing Blade.svg • Wallingford Rowing Club Wallingford Rowing Blade.svg • Walton Rowing Club Walton Rowing Club Rowing Blade.svg • Weybridge Ladies ARC Weybridge Ladies ARC rowing blade.gif • Weybridge Rowing Club Weybridge Rowing Blade.svg • Superscript key: • G: in Greenwich • H: in Hammersmith • M: in Mortlake • Ch: in Chiswick (Note: Cygnet & BBL share premises)

Universities

Schools

• Abingdon School Boat Club Abingdon School Boat Club Rowing Blade.svg • Emanuel School Boat Club Emanuel School Boat Club Rowing Blade.svg • Eton College Boat Club Eton College Boat Club Rowing Blade.svg • Great Marlow School Boat Club Great Marlow School Blade.svg • Hampton School Boat Club Van Mildert Boat Club Blade.svg • Headington School Oxford Boat Club Headington School rowing blade.gif • King's College School Boat Club Kings College School Boat Club Rowing Blade.svg • Kingston Grammar School Boat Club Kingston Grammar School Boat Club Rowing Blade.svg • Lady Eleanor Holles School Boat Club Lady Eleanor Holles School Rowing Blade.gif • Latymer Upper School Boat Club Latymer Upper School rowing blade.gif • Pangbourne College Boat Club Pangbourne College Oar.svg • Radley College Boat Club Radley College Boat Club Rowing Blade.png • Shiplake College Boat Club Shiplake College rowing blade.gif • St Edward's School Boat Club St Edward's School Boat Club Rowing Blade.png • St George's College St George's College rowing blade.gif • St Paul's and St Paul's Girls' School Boat Clubs St Paul's Girls School rowing blade.gif • Sir William Borlase's Grammar School Boat Club Sir_William_Borlase's_Grammar_School_rowing_blade.gif • Sir William Perkins's School Boat Club Sir William Perkins School Blade.svg • Tiffin School Boat Club Tiffin School Boat Club Rowing Blade.svg • Westminster School Boat Club Westminster School Boat Club Rowing Blade.svg • Windsor Boys' School Boat Club Windsor Boys' School rowing blade.gif