5.1.16

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ROWING!
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PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

Section B- AA1- Sculling Strokes - Inconsistent hand heights on recovery!
B2 - Technical Model!

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Elite Technical Model of Performer- Mahe Drysdale!
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In a competitive situation, the consistency of hand heights is important as it is an important factor in determining whether a boat will be sat or not. The most important factor in having a balanced boat through the recovery phase is to have consistent hand heights through the boat. Especially in a competitive situation where the rate per minute is typically high. Mahe Drysdale is a very experienced sculler from New Zealand, who is a current olympic champion with 5 word champion titles in a single scull. Despite Mahe’s age of 34 at that time, he is still a world champion not just because of his experience and amount of training, but also due to the fact that he is very consistent on the water. His consistent blade heights allows him for an early catch, which allows him to take full advantage of a stroke. In the 2012 olympics, Mahe finished first with a close 3/4 length lead to
30 year old Czech Republic single sculler Ondřej Synek. !

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Preparation!
To prepare going up the slide, the performer should be sat at the finish with both legs extended, body slightly leaning back. Both oars should be drawn into the chest feathered. !

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Execution!
Blade height can only be judged during the recovery phase. Therefore the recovery phase starts with the full extension of the arms, pushing the oars away from the body. Then, the performer should lean the body forward, past the vertical. Blades should already be off the water then, and the blade height should be kept consistent, back should be straight, and rocked over. While still maintaining the blade heights, move up to quarter slide by bending your legs, start moving towards to the stern of the boat. Blades should be squared and readied on the way to half slide. The performer will then proceed to move up to full slide, and maintain blade heights as though the blades are squared.!

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Recovery !
With shins vertical, the blades should be smoothly and quickly placed into the water with a slight lifting of the hands/oars. The body should remain rocked over, whilst arms should still be straight, and legs bent. !

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5.1.16

PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

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B1- My weakness in relation to the perfect technical model of maintaining blade heights in Rowing!

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Preparation!
When I am at the finish, I often do not let the boat run for long enough. I should be pausing and sat at the finish. Both my blades will be drawn in, with my left slightly higher than my right. I can feather too quickly at times as well, causing the blade to ‘wash out’. I will therefore not gain the full length of the stroke. Washing out if you are sat behind someone can also be distracting for them as they will feel a big backsplash to their finish. !

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Execution!
Under racing situations, I often extend my arms the same time my body rocks over. This is due to the fact that the rating is very high. During training and paddling, I can execute the sequencing well, however once I am under pressure the sequencing can be very hard for me. As I get my arms away, the blade should be off the water. And the the blade height should be kept constant for the remainder of the sequence until I hit the catch. However, as I do not get my first two sequences right in the recovery under race situations my arms are not fully extended before my body rocks over, meaning that the blades are not fully away, meaning my blade height can be affected as my blade will hit the top of my knees as I bend my legs. In sculling, the left blade is higher than the right due to the fact that your left wrist has to cross over your right. And instead of maintaining a higher left wrist, I lower my right wrist to get my right blade off the water. This can affect the blade height as the boat is not actually sat, as your left blade will be very high. At the point where I get to half slide and square my blades once my oar gets through my ankle, core instability comes into place and at times I cannot maintain my core strength. As well as that, the squaring of blades at half slide means I am doing something differently other than moving up the slide, as I have to twist my wrists inwards to square the blades up. This doesn’t only distract me from maintaining blade heights, it also affects my recovery speed as I will often try and rush the remainder of the slide as it is generally harder to balance the boat at that point of the slide. Therefore my blade height will also be affected. I will then get to full slide, but at the same time, maintaining blade height while your blades are squared is harder than maintaining feathered blades as your length between the blade and the water surface has decreased, meaning any inconsistent hand heights will hit the water surface, and this can affect your catch.!

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Recovery!
After getting to full slides with squared blades, the blades should be quickly and smoothly placed into the water with a slight lifting of the hands. This is all dependent on maintaining my blade heights as mentioned earlier, if my blades hit the water surface just before the catch, this can cause my blade heights to change. And rather than lifting both my hands up for the blades to drop into the water, it will often go on one side of the blades first due to inconsistent hand heights.
However, as I get to full slides with my blades buried, my body is still rocked over, with both arms straight and legs bent.!

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5.1.16

PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

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Section B- AA1- Sculling Strokes - Drive phase, sequencing!
B2 - Technical Model !

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Elite Technical Model of Performer-Mahe Drysdale !
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The drive phase is the most important part of rowing as a good leg drive will determine how quickly a boat will go with the right power applied. The sequencing of a drive is very important as the sequence has to be in order. So the legs should be fully compressed before the body and arms can be used. An ideal rowing stroke is to have a slow recovery, and a quick leg drive, even in intense competitive situations. Mahe Drysdale has a very good leg drive, and through practice videos of him it is very clear to see his sequencing of the drive phase. His body remains rocked over, with arms still straight while he is compressing and straightening his legs. Once his legs are completely straightened, his body then opens up for that additional power. The arms then draw in, for the finish. In a rowing stroke, the sequence of the legs is what allows the performer to push off from the stern end of the boat. Mahe Drysdale demonstrates a leg drive perfectly, with a quick push of the legs while maintaining his body and arms locked. !

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Preparation!
Before getting to the drive phase, the catch will have been done before, to prepare for the drive phase. The performer should be at full slide. And the blades should be smoothly and quickly placed into the water with a slight lifting of the hands. Mahe Drysdale is very good with his catch and always has a slight back splash to his catch. This illustrates that the catch is early, as he slightly lifts his hands. An early catch can prepare for a very good leg drive as the performer will be able to gain the full advantage of getting to full slide with the blade already placed into the water. Whilst the performer has the blades placed in the water at full slide, the body should still remain rocked over, with both arms straight and legs bent. !

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Execution!
The drive phase starts with the leg drive. The performer should aim to extend the bent legs as quick as possible as most power comes from the quadriceps. As the legs are fully compressed and straight, the performer should still maintain a rocked body and arms should still be straight while holding the oar in the water. The next sequence will be to open the back up for additional power right after the leg drive. And as the knees are maximally extended, body pulled through, and ankles are plantar flexed, the performer should draw the arms in for an arm pull through. !

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Recovery!
As the arms are drawn back into the chest through the arm pull through, the performer shall then feather their blades from being squared. This should be done with just a slight twist of the wrist. !

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5.1.16

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PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

B1- My weakness in relation to the perfect technical model of a good drive phase and sequencing!

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Preparation!
At the catch, my blades should be smoothly and quickly placed into the water with a slight lifting of the hands. My catch can be late at times due to late squares and inconsistent hand heights. This can affect the catch, and at the same time affect the remainder of the drive sequence as well. A late catch will mean that I lose the full length of the stroke. !

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Execution!
As my blade is buried into the water, and at full slide, the first action of the sequence in the drive phase will be the leg drive. But as I do not get the catch right at times, I lose a lot of length on the leg drive, which consists of more than 50% of the power of the drive phase. In order to gain full advantage of the leg drive, I need to prepare myself at the catch and make good use of the legs. I am able to maintain my body at the same position at the catch as I do the leg drive, and it is a good thing as you will want to open up the body after the leg drive for additional power. However, I am often unable to execute the next phase of the sequence well which is the arm pull through. My arm pull through can be too early. I often pull my arms through the same time my body opens up. This will make me rely on the arms too much if I was to pull my arms through so early. Rather than using my body to lever through the remainder of the stroke and leaving the arms to finish the stroke off, my arms come through the same time my body opens up, meaning that my arm sequence will finish before my body comes through. !

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Recovery!
As I finish too early with my arm pull through coming before my body finishes the open up sequence, this will cause my blade to ‘wash out’ as mentioned earlier. This means I did not only not gain full advantage of the start of the stroke which I have lost to the catch and the leg drive phase, I also lose length on the finish as I feather up too early. And as I draw my blades in, they can often be too low, rather than being just a few inches off the chest. This is also a factor to maintaing good hand heights. !

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5.1.16

PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

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Section B- AA2- Rowing on stroke side- Early Square
B2 - Technical Model!

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Elite Technical Model of Performer- Hamish Bond!
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If a performer wants a good catch and drive phase, a preparation of an early square will aid the performer. The catch is the most important part of the rowing stroke cycle. The boat velocity is the lowest at the catch. The key part of the catch is to move the blades into the water as fast as possible at the maximum angle. If the hands move up too slow, the blade will be dragged in the water. And ideally, performers will not want to waste even more time squaring up the blade at the catch, which will be described as a late square. Performers will want to have their blades squared up after passing their ankles. Hamish Bond, stroke of the Kiwi pair demonstrates this very well even under race situations and is able to consistently square early, and eventually have a good catch, which aids the boat velocity. The Kiwi pair has six world rowing championships gold medals, set 2 world best times and have won a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics. !

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Preparation!
To execute the squaring of the blade, the performer should prepare themselves before the recovery by executing the finish. At the finish, performers should prepare by sitting back at the bow end of the slide, with their legs straight, sat up and body slightly leaning back. The oar should be drawn in just a few inches off their chest. !

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Execution!
The performer will then start the recovery phase. The recovery phase starts with the performer extending their arms fully, pushing the oar away from the body. After the arms are fully straight, the body should be leaned forwards past vertical. The blade height should still be maintained. Knees remain extended, and the back should be straight, not slumped over. After both actions are executed, the performer will then move up to quarter slide by bending their legs, and slowly start moving towards the stern of the boat. As the performer gets to half slide, this is where squaring should occur as the oar gets pass the ankles. The execution of the square should be only done with the inside hand, which is the right hand on stroke side. And as the performer moves up to the remainder of the slide, the speed of the recovery should not be affected and remained the same.
Blade height should still be remained, and the blade should be squared and readied for the catch at this point.!

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Recovery!
As the blade is squared and readied at full slide, the performer should then smoothly and quickly place the blade into the water with a slight lifting of the oar with the hands. This is the catch, and as the performer is at full slide, with their blade buried into the water, they should maintain their position from half slide with body rocked over, arms straight and legs bent. !

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5.1.16

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PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

B1- My weakness in relation to the perfect technical model of an early square!
Preparation!
As I am sat at the finish rowing on stroke side, I struggle to do the draw up sequence. The blade should be drawn in to the chest with the left shoulder higher than the right shoulder. In race situations, the drawing in sequence can slack off and instead of finishing the draw in as well as the tap down for the start of the recovery phase, I will just go from the drawn in position without tapping down. In a crew, this can affect others as I will not be in sync with others who are tapping down.
This also leads to the problem where the oar is not drawn up high enough. As I keep the motion of moving my arms forwards and backwards without changing my hand position, it would be kept constant and it will often be around my abdominals. The ideal drawing up height will be up at the chest.! !

Execution!
To execute an early square, it only happens during half slide at the recovery. The recovery therefore starts with me extending my arms fully. I am fine with this, however like sculling I can extend my arms too late at times right after the finish. However this seldom happens as I am more comfortable with sweep rowing than sculling, and have received more coaching on sweep rowing. I do have to improve my tapping down whilst sweep rowing though. My body rocks over after my arms extend, which is fine. My blade height is also very consistent up to half slide. Everything up to half slide is quite well executed, but as I get to half slide this means that my oar will pass through my ankles. This is when I should square my blade up. In practice, I can execute this well as I am not under pressure. However, in race situations with intense rating I often struggle with squaring my blade up early, as every sequence and action goes very quickly. Therefore I often square late, which will cause problems to the catch. A late square will mean that I waste time at the catch trying to put my blade in, rather than preparing my blade for early entry at the catch. I often square up right before getting to full slide.!

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Recovery!
A late square will mean that I waste time at the catch trying to put my blade in, rather than preparing my blade for early entry at the catch. I will not be able to maximise the full length of the stroke if I was to waste time at the catch squaring my blade up. A late catch means that the slide will not be used efficiently, leading to a poor leg drive. !

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5.1.16

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PE COURSEWORK

Section B- AA2- Rowing on bow side- Sequencing from the finish
B2 - Technical Model!

D SHAM

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Elite Technical Model of Performer- Steven Redgrave!
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The sequencing in the recovery is very important as the extension of the arms and rocking over of the body has to be ready before the performer can move up the slide. Steven Redgrave, is one of
Britain’s greatest Olympians ever, and is also the most successful male rower in Olympic rowing.
He is the only person to have ever won 5 gold medals. He has also managed to win 9 gold medals at the world championships. Steve Redgrave is my model of performer as he is no doubt one of the most successful athletes in the world of rowing, he also demonstrates the perfect example of a rowing stroke at all times. His sequencing even under racing situations is very clear and obvious, that his arms first extends, then the body rock, and after that he moves up the slide with blade squared at half slide and prepares himself for an early catch. That makes up for a good sequencing from the finish. !

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Preparation!
Before the sequencing from the finish, which is the recovery phase, the performer should be sat at the finish. They will be sat at the end of the slide, sat up straight. The blade should be drawn up to the chest, right elbow drawn all the way back. Therefore the left shoulder should be lower than the right. !

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Execution!
The recovery starts as the performer taps the oar down from the chest. This lifts the blade just a few inches off of the water. The performer should then extend their arms completely, while maintaining a straight body, and legs straight as well as maintaining blade height. As the arms are away, the performer should rock the body over as the arms are away. The performer should not collapse their bodies over and should instead aim to rock over, while maintaining the straight arms.
Once both actions have been executed, the remainder of the recovery phase can occur as performers move up to quarter slide by bending their knees. The blade should also be fully controlled by the outside arm, which is the right arm in this case. Performer should then twist their cores towards their left as they get to half slide, and blade should be also squared and readied at this point as the oar passes the ankles. Twisting your core towards the rigger will enable performers to gain the full stroke as they hit the catch. Squaring should also be done with just the inside wrist, which is the left. The performer should move up to full slide afterwards while maintaining blade height to prepare themselves for a catch.!

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Recovery!
As the performer gets to full slide, the blade should be smoothly and quickly placed into the water with a slight lifting of the hands. As they are at the catch, the body should still remain rocked over with arms straight and legs bent.!

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5.1.16

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PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

B1- My weakness in relation to the perfect technical model of sequencing from the finish!

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Preparation!
The drawing in for bow side is even worse as this is not my main side for sweep rowing. I often struggle with pulling my right hand all the way in, with my elbow drawing in. My left shoulder however is often lower than the right.!

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Execution!
The recovery phase starts with tapping the blade down from my chest, and I find it easier to tap down on bow side as I find it easier to control my outside wrist when I row on bow side. This is due to the fact that my dominant hand is my right. Under race situations, I struggle with the first sequence of the recovery which is arms away. I would often struggle with getting them straight all the way to full slide, and as well as rushing the slide from the finish. This brings me to the next sequence, the body rock. As a result of the rushing, I will rock my body over the same time I attempt to extend my arms. This is less noticeable in practices and paddles, however in intense race situations it is obvious. The blade should be fully controlled by the outside arm, which I think I have good control of. Again, as a result of the rushed body rock and arms away, I would rush the slide sequence as well. I would sometimes still be rocking my body over while moving up from quarter slide to half slide. As I move up from half slide to full slide, I should also be twisting my core towards my left, to gain the full rowing stroke. However, I lean towards my rigger rather than twisting my core towards the rigger. This can cause a slight instability of the boat. My blade should also be squared and readied by half slide, once my oar gets pass my ankle. This again is a problem and adds more to the rushing of the sequence. As I try and square the blade, this causes me to want to get to full slide even quicker as the chance of my blade being in contact with the water surface increases. This adds to the rushing factor. And I should be at full slide with extended arms, body rocked and sat up straight. However, my arms are not straight and quite bent, which can cause problems to the drive phase.!

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Recovery!
Once I get to full side, I often place the blade in quick for the catch, however not gently as everything is so rushed previously. Slamming my blade in quickly for the catch is not an early and good catch. An ideal catch is a smooth, yet quick dropping of hands so the blade would drop into the water. !

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5.1.16

PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

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Section B- AA3- Strategy/Tactics- Sprint Finish
B2 - Technical Model!

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Elite Technical Model of Performer- South African 4- !
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A sprint finish to a 2k race is always very intense as crews often have their ratings go up to 40 or even higher, in hopes of catching up to the crew that is ahead of them. The South African lightweight 4- in the 2012 Olympics has miraculously caught up from 4th place to Great Britain,
Denmark and Australia who were going to battle out for the gold medal. South Africa crossed the
1500m mark being 1.3 seconds behind Denmark. And as they hit the 250m mark, bowman
Matthew Brittain gave the crew a call in order to respond to the other crews sprinting for the finish as well. Stroke-man Sizwe Ndlovu responded to Matt’s call and kept on bringing the rate up. It has gradually gone from high 30s to 42 in the end. From the transition of the last 250m to 150m, the
South African 4- went from being one length down to the leader, Denmark to being just a canvas ahead of Denmark. At the end, the race was incredibly close with South Africa finishing first place, placing just 0.25 seconds ahead of Great Britain. The sprint finish was a very tactical call, if it was called too early the crew might burnout and lose even more length. If it is called too late, the crew will not have enough time to catch up. Therefore the South African 4- has demonstrated the sprint finish very well. !

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Preparation!
The preparation for a sprint finish will be a race plan. A race plan is always planned ahead of the start of the race, as crews will come together and decide what the best strategy or call is for the crew. In an 8, the cox will give out the call to the rest of the crew. And the performer must respond to this/ follow the stroke man of the boat. In cox less boats like the cox less 4 or the quad, the call will be given out by either bow or 2 seat of the crew, as the message will be able to relay from the bow end of the boat to stroke. In smaller boats like pairs and doubles, it will be again given by bow of the crew. In singles, the performer can make a single decision and act on it. !

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Execution!
A sprint finish is executed as soon as the cox or the bowman calls it out. This means that performers will have to respond and act on the call. A typical sprint finish starts in the last
200-300m of the race. Crews can execute this action earlier however in a 2k race, lactic acid builds up in the muscles and at this stage of the race the crew will already be heavily fatigued. To execute a sprint finish well, the boat speed has to go up. This can be aided with a higher rating in the boat.
Rating typically go between 36-40 in order for a sprint finish to be effective. Power calls can also be used in a sprint finish, like power 10s or 20s. !

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Recovery!
As a result of the sprint, boat speed should pick up, rating should go up. However, this does not mean a slow drive phase, as performers should seek to push off the stern end of the boat as hard as they can to maximise leg drive. The recovery phase will be higher as a result, however the drive phase should be even quicker to compensate for the rate change. !

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5.1.16

PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

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B1- My weakness in relation to the perfect technical model of a sprint finish!
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Preparation!
In terms of a race plan for a sprint finish, it is very dependent as in races like the Henley Royal
Regatta, if your opponent is a couple of lengths behind you, a sprint finish will be unnecessary and instead crews will wind down their rating to conserve energy for the days to come. However, in proper 6 lane races, competition increases and crews will barely be too far apart from each other as they are placed together according to their heat times. Therefore a sprint for the finish is more commonly seen in 6 lane races. The crews that I am in always plan for a sprint finish no matter what. And we often decide to sprint for the last 250 metres for the race, as it gives us enough water to catch up if necessary. However, in a cox less 4, I often struggle with listening out for bowman to call out for the sprint, and as I am sat in stroke seat for one of the races, I had no idea my crew had wanted a sprint as I did not pay attention to how much we have got for the remainder for the race.
And as stroke man, it is my responsibility to bring the rating up. Therefore this means I will not be able to respond. Eventually, I figured a sprint is needed as I could feel my crew wanting to bring the rate up. !

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Execution!
My biggest weakness of executing the sprint finish is the physically ability to execute the sprint finish. I have a clear understanding of what a sprint finish is, however as you get to about the 1500 metre mark, you get really fatigued. My whole body will be burning, and this discourages me to push even further as it will hurt even more. As the whole point of a sprint finish is to push harder and get the rating higher as well, this means more energy will be needed. As a result of fatigue and attempting to execute a sprint finish, I will often speed up the recovery, however not speeding up the drive at the same time.!

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Recovery!
My fatigue affecting my recovery will ruin the rhythm of the boat as the whole point of the recovery is to let the boat run. The more you the rush the recovery, the less momentum it gains if you do not speed the drive phase up as well. Therefore my weakness is that I get fatigued, and that my drive phase does not compensate for my sped up recovery phase.!

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PE COURSEWORK

Section B- AA3- Strategy/Tactics- Settle/Rhythm after sprint start
B2 - Technical Model!

D SHAM

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Elite Technical Model of Performer- German 8 (2012 Olympics)!
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A sprint start typically starts off at a very high rate, and the slides are often rowed at half slides or
3/4 slides. Crews should start off with a very high rate, and then aim to get to full slide by the 5th stroke or so, whilst still maintaining that high rate. At about the 25th-30th strokes, rowers should start settling into their rhythm. This is to enable them to pace themselves out for the remainder of the race. It is physically very challenging to maintain 40 strokes per minute for a 2km race.
Therefore to prevent rowers from burning out, a settle will often occur. The German 8 who won the
2012 Olympics Men’s 8 demonstrates a settle very well, and they often look very relaxed, even in an intense race start. In the 2012 Olympic Games, they have settled before they have even hit the
250m mark. And their rating was at 37 at that point, and they were in the lead. And as they paced themselves out for the remainder of the race, they were ahead of Canada as well as Great Britain.
They ended up winning a gold medal with a winning time of 5:48.75. !

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Preparation!
Before a rhythm call can occur, a sprint start will have occurred first. To perform a sprint start, performers should be sat at 3/4 slides, with their backs straight, arms away, and legs bent. As the race starts, the first action that should occur will be the crew straightening their legs from 3/4 slides, then they will bring their arms in. In sprint starts, crews typically do not open up their backs and keep them rocked over, as it will let them focus on the legs, and it allows them to give their strokes small bursts from the legs instead of opening up the back and wasting time on the drive.
Therefore the second stroke will be a shorter stroke, performers should reach 1/4 slides to keep the momentum up. For the 3rd and 4th stroke, crews typically go 1/2 and 1/2 or 3/4 and 3/4, depending on different crews. The Germans did 3/4 and 3/4 to get more power from the legs. By the 5th stroke, rowers should start settling into full slides. However they should not be settling by then already and should still be rating very high. For the remainder of the 20-30 strokes, the rating should still be kept relatively high.!

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Execution!
The execution of a rhythm or a settle should be called out by the cox or bowman of the crew, and the whole crew should know of this as it should be part of their race plan. And at around the
25th-30th stroke, the rating should go down and settle in according to the cox or bowman as they call out and coordinate the timing for the settle. In a settle after sprint start, recoveries should be slightly slower, and there should be slight pauses at recovery. However, this does not mean that the crew should have a slower drive as this will slow down the boat marginally. They will have to keep the momentum up, or the crew can start losing the other crew and cannot keep up with them.
A clear water for another crew can be very motivational for them and they will push even more to gain more length. !

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Recovery!
The result of a rhythm should not affect boat speed by a lot. Although a high rating does help with boat speed, the whole point of a settle is that the rowers can settle into their racing pace for the remainder of the race so that they don’t burnout. The rating should go down as a result, but definitely not the boat speed. !

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PE COURSEWORK

D SHAM

Preparation!
A race start can be very complicated, especially in bigger boats. As this means that in an 8, all 8 rowers will have to execute the exact same actions as each other. This can be a problem for me at times as everyone is not doing the same thing. Someone else can be starting at half slide instead of 3/4 slide right off the start, this means everyone will get to the finish at different times. Therefore a weakness will be that my crew has to practice the race start more often, and video analysis can be done to see who is doing the wrong things. The follow ups for the strokes after can be very chaotic as well. A race start is very quick and it happens very quickly. Therefore everyone has to coordinate very well.!

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Execution !
Settling after a sprint start is very challenging as our cox barely calls out when we should settle in.
Although stroke controls the rating has a good idea of when to settle in, it does not necessarily mean that it will be executed between the 8 of us. The cox has to call out the specific stroke as to when the settle occurs. It can be calls such as ‘On 3’, or ‘Next stroke’, and then the settle occurs.
However, this rarely occurs and we will always follow stroke and just feel the rhythm of the boat change.! !

Recovery!
With the boat not having a call, this can psychologically affect the boat as some rowers in the boat will be forced to row at that rhythm at that point, instead of having the cox call out the specific stroke and then realising when it has to be executed. If this is done, the whole crew will know when the settle occurs and how much power we should be applying and that we should be slowing down the recovery and sitting at the finish. !

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