The format of the competition depends on how many boats are competing.
All events include a repechage – a series of further races to qualify boats for semi-finals or finals, and to rank all boats in order of performance.
Events with 12 or fewer boats start with two heats. The best boats in heats 1 and 2 qualify for final A, which determines places 1–6 (including the medals). Unsuccessful boats from the heats compete in the repechage round, which offers a second chance to qualify for final A. Unsuccessful boats from the repechage go forward to final B, which determines places 7–12.
Events with 13–18 boats begin with heats, from which the best boats qualify directly for semi-finals A/B. All other boats progress to the repechage round, which offers a second chance to qualify for the semi-finals. The best three boats in semi-finals A/B qualify for final A, which determines places 1–6 (including the medals). Unsuccessful boats from semi-finals A/B go forward to final B, which determines places 7–12. Unsuccessful boats from the repechage go forward to final C, which determines places 13–18.
Events with 19–24 boats begin with heats, from which the best boats qualify directly for semi-finals A/B. All other boats progress to the repechage round, which offers a second chance to qualify for the semi-finals. The best three boats in semi-finals A/B qualify for final A, which determines places 1–6 (including the medals). Unsuccessful boats from semi-finals A/B go forward to final B, which determines places 7–12. Unsuccessful boats from the repechage go to semi-finals C/D; from here, they go either to final C (places 13–18) or final D (places 19–24).
If there are more than 24 boats in an event, the four best boats from each heat go through to the quarter-finals, with the other boats competing in a repechage to fill the remaining quarter-final places. The best three boats from each quarter-final progress to the semi-finals, with the top three from each semi-final advancing to final A. The other boats compete in finals B, C, D and E (which rank boats from seven downwards).
Events with 25 or more boats begin with heats, and the four best boats in each heat qualify directly for the quarter-finals. All other boats compete in the repechage round, which offers a second chance to qualify for the quarter-finals. The best three boats in each quarter-final qualify for semi-finals A/B, with the best three boats in each semi-final qualifying for final A. All other boats progress through a series of races to finals B, C, D, E and (if necessary) F, which determine the other placings.
Find out more about the Rowing competitions at the Olympic Games on the International Olympic Committee website.
