Oar (sport rowing)

Oars differ from paddles in that they use a fixed or sliding fulcrum, an oarlock or rowlock attached to the side of the boat, to transfer power from the handle to the blade, rather than using the athlete's shoulders or hands as the pivot-point as in canoeing and kayaking.

A scull has a smaller blade area, as each rower wields a pair of them at any one time, operating each with one hand.

The handle may revert to wooden or, particularly in the case of sculls and some 21st century models of sweep-oar blades have rubber, cellular foam, suede or for example wood veneer grips over glass fiber.

The shape of the face and the offset connection are designed to maximize the surface area of the blade in contact with the water during the rowing stroke, while also minimizing the amount and depth of the shaft that is submerged and contributing to drag.

Technically, this is true of all oars, as the blade sits at a slight angle to the squared off surface on the sleeve.

Macon blades achieved prominence at the 1959 European Championship in Mâcon when they were used by the West German national team.

Some rowers of traditional skiffs use them but macons or wider oars dominate in dinghy rowing.

Thus the development from standard to macon to cleaver is a progression from long, thin blades to shorter, wider ones and more durable material.

Two "cleaver" sculls. The blades which enter the water are at the top of the picture and the handles are at the bottom. Note how the oar shaft connects not to the midline of the blade (as is the case of macons) but rather higher pitch, that is toward an upper part of the spoon/blade when perpendicular to the waterline.
There have been three major types of blades used over the past century. Oars have generally become shorter, and blade area has been increased.