Rowing WR Final World Olympic Qualification Regatta 2024

dodge · May 20

3 hours ago, Nickyc707 said:

Stronger nations running down their lightweight programmes as this is their final Olympic appearance, perhaps?

They didn’t really have them to be fair. Different for women where the difference isn’t so pronounced but lightweight men has never been a focus for the big nations (with respect to Italy)

Rafa Maciel · May 20

3 minutes ago, dodge said:

They didn’t really have them to be fair. Different for women where the difference isn’t so pronounced but lightweight men has never been a focus for the big nations (with respect to Italy)

:GBR had a decent lightweight program through the Rio cycle having taken silver in London with Purchase/Hunter. They were still fielding an entry in the event at world championship level through to 2019 but post covid the program never really recovered and there are now no lightweight men on the squad.

Nickyc707 · May 20

45 minutes ago, dodge said:

They didn’t really have them to be fair. Different for women where the difference isn’t so pronounced but lightweight men has never been a focus for the big nations (with respect to Italy)

As Rafa said some did prior to the removal of the men's lightweight four from the programme. Having a squad of say eight lightweight rowers was sustainable where 2-3 is not, particularly when the writing was on the wall for the lightweights at Olympic level. And once it goes from the OG it slowly dies a death at WC level as we've seen with the small number of entries - usually led by Italy - in non-Olympic classes. It's happened in other sports as well, e.g. the double trap in shooting.

mpjmcevoy · May 21

7 hours ago, Nickyc707 said:

As Rafa said some did prior to the removal of the men's lightweight four from the programme. Having a squad of say eight lightweight rowers was sustainable where 2-3 is not, particularly when the writing was on the wall for the lightweights at Olympic level. And once it goes from the OG it slowly dies a death at WC level as we've seen with the small number of entries - usually led by Italy - in non-Olympic classes. It's happened in other sports as well, e.g. the double trap in shooting.

One wonders if the IOC give enough thinking to the fact that when they pick and choose disciplines, they could be creating a death sentence for the ones they throw out. Racewalking, equestrian modern pentathlon, lightweight rowing, C2 canoe slalom, individual pursuit, double trap...

Nickyc707 · May 21

16 minutes ago, mpjmcevoy said:

One wonders if the IOC give enough thinking to the fact that when they pick and choose disciplines, they could be creating a death sentence for the ones they throw out. Racewalking, equestrian modern pentathlon, lightweight rowing, C2 canoe slalom, individual pursuit, double trap...

The individual pursuit seems to have survived fairly well at the moment albeit with diminished fields at most championships, although whether that is sustainable is anyone's guess. I thought the C2 Canoe Slalom might at least hang on in its European stronghold but was quite surprised to see it was no longer part of the programme at the recent continental championships. Sadly the IOC's equivalent of the Black Spot is pretty deadly.

Edited May 21 by Nickyc707