Short answers, pulled from the story.
Male rowers have competed at the Summer Olympics since 1900. Rowing was on the programme for the 1896 Games but was cancelled due to bad weather. Women's rowing was added to the Olympic programme in 1976.
Doggett's Coat and Badge, first contested in 1715, is the oldest surviving rowing race. It is held annually on the River Thames from London Bridge to Chelsea.
In sculling, each rower holds two oars, one in each hand. In sweep rowing, each rower holds a single oar with both hands. Sculling is more anatomically efficient because forces are applied symmetrically to both sides of the boat.
Yes. The World Rowing Federation, formerly known as FISA and founded in 1892, is the oldest international sports federation in the Olympic movement. It organizes the World Rowing Championships across twenty-two boat classes.
The Head of the Charles Regatta, held each October on the Charles River in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest rowing event in the world. Head racing was exported from the United Kingdom to the United States in the 1950s.
The world's first women's rowing team was formed in 1896 at the Furnivall Sculling Club in London. The club's signature colors were myrtle and gold, and it began admitting men in 1901.