Make the Boat Go Faster: 150 Years of Rowing Research

Dr. Stephen Seiler surveys 150 years of competitive rowing data to show that, from 1829, rowers have set linear speed improvements of about 2-3 percent per decade. But why?

Dr. Stephen Seiler surveys 150 years of competitive rowing data to show that, from 1829, rowers have set linear improvements in speed of about 2-3 percent per decade.

Why?

Seiler says the sport of rowing has carefully recruited athletes, and those athletes have simply become taller and heavier—and presumably more capable of higher power output.