Masters Rowing

What is Masters Rowing?

A rower may compete as a masters rower from the beginning of the year during which he or she turns 27. Masters rowers are then placed in categories A to M, ‘A’ being an average of 27 years or over, and ‘M’ being an average of 89 years or over. Dependent on the age they turn that year, the masters rower will then compete against others with the same average age in the respective category. The average and minimum age of a crew competing excludes that of the coxswain.

World Rowing Masters Regatta

The aim of a masters rower can be everything from recreational rowing to competing at regattas. The masters World Rowing event is the World Rowing Masters Regatta. Racing takes place over a 1000m distance and the regatta can attract over 3,000 rowers.

Masters rowing also focuses on the health and fitness benefits of rowing, socialising and forming friendships.

Masters rowing age groups

The age of a rower in a masters rowing event shall be that which he/she attains during the year of the event. Masters rowing events shall be held in the following crew age categories:

A. Minimum age: 27 years
B. Average age: 36 years or more
C. Average age: 43 years or more
D. Average age: 50 years or more
E. Average age: 55 years or more
F. Average age: 60 years or more
G. Average age: 65 years or more
H. Average age: 70 years or more
I. Average age: 75 years or more
J. Average age: 80 years or more
K. Average age: 83 years or more
L. Average age: 86 years or more
M. Average age: 89 years or more

Age categories do not apply to coxswains of masters crews. Each competitor shall be responsible for his/her own health and fitness.

Every masters rower must be in a position to prove his/her age by presentation of an official document (passport or identity card).

World Rowing Masters Club Trophy

Three Club Trophies are awarded at the World Rowing Masters Regatta: Men’s events, Women’s events and overall for the most successful clubs at the regatta based on a points system. The overall trophy calculation has a proviso that points awarded for one gender are capped at no more than double the points for the other gender, thus encouraging those clubs that have entries for both genders.

These trophies are determined solely by the performance of club crews, as defined below. Composite crews will not earn points towards the Club Trophies, but will otherwise continue to be fully eligible to compete for the regular medals as usual.

The eligibility rules for the Club Trophies are posted here.

Octogenerian (Octos) medals

Any rower above the age of 80 competing at the World Rowing Masters Regatta is awarded a medal with a special lanyard.

Youth fund

The World Rowing Masters Regatta supports Masters-to-Youth rowing initiatives through a contribution of “1 euro per seat.” The funds support youth rowing initiatives worldwide, with a focus on developing nations.

World Rowing Masters Membership

As a mark to recognise our Masters rowers, World Rowing is launching a platform – World Rowing Masters which gives you an opportunity to get the profile and publicity you deserve.

You can choose between Silver and Gold Memberships, each offering various features such as a personal profile, participation statistics, and results database, depending on membership.

As the masters racing events are more serious competitions than ever, the verification of athletes is mandatory. The platform enables for all licensed members to be verified accurately and easily during the sign-up process. This prevents queueing up at the Regatta Venue to get your ID verified.

This is a mandatory requirement for World Rowing Masters Regattas from 2025 onwards.

World Rowing Masters Portal is fully GDPR Compliant: World-Rowing-Masters-membership_GDPR-C

Handicap Calculator

In Masters rowing, athletes of different ages and even boat classes compete alongside each other. The World Rowing Masters Handicap system helps make these races fairer by applying time adjustments based on age, allowing performances to be compared more consistently over the 1,000‑metre distance.

The system is based on more than ten years of World Rowing Masters Regatta results and uses a data‑driven model to reflect how performance changes with age. The World Rowing Masters Handicap Calculator, available on the Masters Portal, allows rowers, clubs and organisers to compare crews, benchmark results in both racing and training. Using the time handicaps helps regatta organisers to run races with multiple age categories together. As new data is added, the system continues to evolve to reflect the current standard of Masters rowing.