Rowing on the River Thames

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.

[1] The sport and recreational/touring rowing takes place on the Tideway and on the 45 separate lock reaches on the non-tidal section.

Many clubs and a few schools and village fair committees as far inland as Oxford host shorter races – regattas – in warmer months.

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,[2] 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.

[3][4] Other rowing typically takes place in dragon boats, dongolas, dinghies, inflatable rafts and larger skiffs known as cutters.

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.