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The sun rises. The soft swift wind blows across the athlete’s face as the sun peaks just above the trees, outlining the lake. The sun’s powerful reflection off the water blinds her eyes as she glide across the calm surface of the water. The soft murmur of the oars churning the water with every stroke creates a soothing rhythm. The team synchronizes their strokes to create a constant smooth motion of the boat. “The Power” is their pride and joy that will hopefully lead them to victory today. They come up to the starting line with anticipation and confidence. As Kate looks at her teammates in the boat, she reassures herself that they will win. The white flag goes up. She sits upright with her back straight and strong; arms extended, hands tight, gripping the rubber handles, legs ready to jump when the horn sounds. She is focused and ready to win. All of the oars are buried in the still water ready to push “The Power” with great force and speed. The horn sounds. The race begins. Rowing is an absolute fantastic sport for a variety of reasons. It strengthens the body and mind while enforcing discipline. For these reasons, it has been, is, and continues to be one of the most challenging of sports. It has been around for centuries, and will stay among the best competitive sports around the world. However, rowing started out as a means of transportation and warfare. Some of the oldest ancient civilizations used rowing to advance their cultures. Naval battles depended on the Ii oarsmen to power the speed of the attack on the enemy. Egypt and Rome were the first civilizations to introduce competitive rowing. Since then rowing has grown into one of the oldest and most traditional sports today. Many Ivy League schools were notorious for their skillful rowing teams; Harvard and Yale were two of the first universities to bring rowing into the United States.
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