In the United States, Crew or Rowing is a popular sport in secondary and tertiary education.
[1] The Harvard-Yale Regatta is the oldest college sporting event in the United States.
[2] The American Henley Regatta was the first national championships for the sport of rowing in the United States.
The Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) has been the de facto national championship for men since 1895.
In the 1996–97 season, most women's intercollegiate rowing programs elected to join the NCAA as a "Championship" sport.