Rowing at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Men's single sculls

The men's single sculls event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place from 23 to 30 July 2021 at the Sea Forest Waterway.[1] 32 rowers from 32 nations competed.[2]

Men's single sculls
at the Games of the XXXII Olympiad
Olympic rowing
VenueSea Forest Waterway
Dates23–30 July 2021
Competitors32 from 32 nations
Winning time6:40.45
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) Stefanos Ntouskos  Greece
2nd place, silver medalist(s) Kjetil Borch  Norway
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Damir Martin  Croatia
← 2016
2024 →

Background edit

This will be the 28th appearance of the event, which was not held at the first Games in 1896 (when bad weather forced the cancellation of all rowing events) but has been held at every Summer Olympics since 1900.

Of the 6 finalists from the 2016 Games, silver medalist Damir Martin of Croatia is the only one to return. Two-time reigning gold medalist Mahé Drysdale was defeated by Jordan Parry in New Zealand's selection process.[3]

The three World Champions since the 2016 Games are Ondřej Synek of the Czech Republic (a three-time Olympic medalist), Kjetil Borch of Norway, and Oliver Zeidler of Germany. Synek announced on his Facebook page that he will not be going to Tokyo.[4] Borch and Zeidler competed in Tokyo.

Benin, the Dominican Republic, the Ivory Coast, Nicaragua, and Saudi Arabia made their debut in the event. An athlete from Russia competed under the ROC flag. Italy and the Netherlands each made their 15th appearance, tied for most among nations competing in Tokyo and fourth-most among all nations (Great Britain at 22, the United States at 21, and Switzerland at 16 did not have competitors in this event at the 2020 Games).

Qualification edit

Each National Olympic Committee (NOC) has been limited to a single boat (one rower) in the event since 1912. There are 32 qualifying places in the men's single sculls:[2]

  • 9 from the 2019 World Championship
  • 5 from the Asia & Oceania qualification regatta
  • 5 from the Africa qualification regatta
  • 5 from the Americas qualification regatta
  • 3 from the Europe qualification regatta
  • 2 from the final qualification regatta
  • 1 host nation place
  • 2 invitational places

The COVID-19 pandemic delayed many of the events for qualifying for rowing.

Competition format edit

This rowing event is a single scull event, meaning that each boat is propelled by a single rower. The "scull" portion means that the rower uses two oars, one on each side of the boat; this contrasts with sweep rowing in which each rower has one oar and rows on only one side (not feasible for singles events). The competition consists of multiple rounds. The competition continues to use the five-round format introduced in 2012. Finals are held to determine the placing of each boat; these finals are given letters with those nearer to the beginning of the alphabet meaning a better ranking. Semifinals are named based on which finals they fed, with each semifinal having two possible finals. The course uses the 2000 metres distance that became the Olympic standard in 1912.[5]

During the first round six heats are held. The first three boats in each heat advance to the quarterfinals, while all others are relegated to the repechages.

The repechage is a round which offers rowers a second chance to qualify for the quarterfinals. Placing in the repechage heats determines which quarterfinal the boat would race in. The top two boats in each repechage heat move on to the quarterfinals, with the remaining boats going to the E/F semifinals.

The four quarterfinals are the second round for rowers still competing for medals. Placing in the quarterfinal heats determines which semifinal the boat would race in. The top three boats in each quarterfinal move on to the A/B semifinals, with the bottom three boats going to the C/D semifinals.

Six semifinals are held, two each of A/B semifinals, C/D semifinals, and E/F semifinals. For each semifinal race, the top three boats move on to the better of the two finals, while the bottom three boats go to the lesser of the two finals possible. For example, a second-place finish in an A/B semifinal would result in advancement to the A final.

The fifth and final round is the finals. Each final determines a set of rankings. The A final determines the medals, along with the rest of the places through 6th. The B final gives rankings from 7th to 12th, the C from 13th to 18th, and so on. Thus, to win a medal rowers have to finish in the top three of their heat (or top two of their repechage heat), top three of their quarterfinal, and top three of their A/B semifinal to reach the A final.

Schedule edit

The competition is held over eight days. Times given are session start times; multiple rowing events might have races during a session.[1]

All times are Japan Standard Time (UTC+9)

Date Time Round
Friday, 23 July 2021 8:30 Heats
Saturday, 24 July 2021 8:30 Repechage
Sunday, 25 July 2021 9:00 Semifinals E/F
11:40 Quarterfinals
Thursday, 29 July 2021 11:00 Semifinals A/B
11:40 Semifinals C/D
Friday, 30 July 2021 7:45 Final F
8:05 Final E
8:35 Final D
8:55 Final C
9:15 Final B
Friday, 30 July 2021 9:45 Final A

Results edit

Heats edit

The first three of each heat qualify for the quarterfinals, while the remainder go to the repechage.[6]

Heat 1 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 4 Kjetil Borch   Norway 6:54.46 Q
2 1 Bendegúz Pétervári-Molnár   Hungary 7:04.42 Q
3 2 Lucas Verthein   Brazil 7:05.00 Q
4 6 Jan Fleissner   Czech Republic 7:16.56 R
5 5 Abdulrahman Al-Fadhel   Kuwait 8:49.03 R
6 3 Mohammed Al-Khafaji   Iraq 8:57.01 R

Heat 2 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 2 Stefanos Ntouskos   Greece 6:59.49 Q
2 1 Jordan Parry   New Zealand 7:04.45 Q
3 6 Álvaro Torres   Peru 7:07.92 Q
4 5 Quentin Antognelli   Monaco 7:10.52 R
5 3 Ignacio Vásquez   Dominican Republic 7:43.71 R
6 4 Rio Rii   Vanuatu 8:00.98 R

Heat 3 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 3 Sverri Nielsen   Denmark 7:02.88 Q
2 5 Gennaro Di Mauro   Italy 7:06.87 Q
3 4 Vladislav Yakovlev   Kazakhstan 7:10.08 Q
4 2 Peter Purcell-Gilpin   Zimbabwe 7:10.65 R
5 1 Alhussein Ghambour   Libya 7:52.37 R

Heat 4 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 3 Trevor Jones   Canada 7:04.12 Q
2 4 Mindaugas Griškonis   Lithuania 7:05.88 Q
3 2 Onat Kazaklı   Turkey 7:20.11 Q
4 5 Dara Alizadeh   Bermuda 7:34.96 R
5 1 Husein Alireza   Saudi Arabia 7:54.18 R

Heat 5 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 1 Damir Martin   Croatia 7:09.17 Q
2 5 Aleksandr Vyazovkin   ROC 7:14.95 Q
3 4 Cris Nievarez   Philippines 7:22.97 Q
4 3 Félix Potoy   Nicaragua 7:32.54 R
5 2 Privel Hinkati   Benin 7:40.87 R

Heat 6 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 4 Oliver Zeidler   Germany 7:00.40 Q
2 1 Ryuta Arakawa   Japan 7:02.79 Q
3 3 Abdelkhalek El-Banna   Egypt 7:03.44 Q
4 2 Finn Florijn   Netherlands 7:04.56 R
5 5 Franck N'Dri   Ivory Coast 7:49.19 R

Repechage edit

The first two in each heat qualify for the quarterfinals; the rest go to Semifinals E/F (out of medal contention).

Repechage heat 1 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 4 Quentin Antognelli   Monaco 7:34.14 Q
2 1 Mohammed Al-Khafaji   Iraq 7:41.72 Q
3 3 Félix Potoy   Nicaragua 7:44.52 QEF
4 5 Alhussein Ghambour   Libya 7:57.88 QEF
5 2 Franck N'Dri   Ivory Coast 8:03.25 QEF

Repechage heat 2 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 2 Jan Fleissner   Czech Republic 7:29.90 Q
2 3 Dara Alizadeh   Bermuda 7:35.90 Q
3 4 Ignacio Vásquez   Dominican Republic 7:42.83 QEF
4 1 Privel Hinkati   Benin 7:55.93 QEF

Repechage heat 3 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 3 Peter Purcell-Gilpin   Zimbabwe 7:35.16 Q
2 2 Husein Alireza   Saudi Arabia 8:06.78 Q
3 1 Rio Rii   Vanuatu 8:17.00 QEF
4 5 Abdulrahman Al-Fadhel   Kuwait 9:04.73 QEF
4 Finn Florijn   Netherlands DNS

Quarterfinals edit

The first three of each heat qualify to the semifinals A/B, remaining Crews to Semifinal C/D

Quarterfinal 1 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 4 Kjetil Borch   Norway 7:10.97 QAB
2 3 Stefanos Ntouskos   Greece 7:12.77 QAB
3 2 Gennaro Di Mauro   Italy 7:26.25 QAB
4 1 Quentin Antognelli   Monaco 7:29.99 QCD
5 5 Abdelkhalek El-Banna   Egypt 7:32.86 QCD
6 6 Husein Alireza   Saudi Arabia 8:35.05 QCD

Quarterfinal 2 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 4 Sverri Nielsen   Denmark 7:10.52 QAB
2 3 Trevor Jones   Canada 7:17.65 QAB
3 5 Aleksandr Vyazovkin   ROC 7:20.04 QAB
4 2 Onat Kazaklı   Turkey 7:32.86 QCD
5 1 Dara Alizadeh   Bermuda 7:35.73 QCD
6 6 Peter Purcell-Gilpin   Zimbabwe 7:37.97 QCD

Quarterfinal 3 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 3 Damir Martin   Croatia 7:17.71 QAB
2 2 Bendegúz Pétervári-Molnár   Hungary 7:24.63 QAB
3 4 Ryuta Arakawa   Japan 7:26.04 QAB
4 5 Álvaro Torres   Peru 7:31.85 QCD
5 6 Jan Fleissner   Czech Republic 7:37.01 QCD
6 1 Vladislav Yakovlev   Kazakhstan 7:39.47 QCD

Quarterfinal 4 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 4 Oliver Zeidler   Germany 7:12.75 QAB
2 2 Lucas Verthein   Brazil 7:14.26 QAB
3 5 Mindaugas Griškonis   Lithuania 7:16.71 QAB
4 3 Jordan Parry   New Zealand 7:18.48 QCD
5 6 Cris Nievarez   Philippines 7:50.74 QCD
6 1 Mohammed Al-Khafaji   Iraq 8:03.55 QCD

Semifinals edit

The first three of each heat qualify to the better final (E, C, A) while the remainder go to the lower final (F, D, B). The exception is that for Semifinal E/F 1 the first two qualify to Final E instead of the first three.

Semifinal A/B 1 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 3 Kjetil Borch   Norway 6:42.92 FA
2 4 Damir Martin   Croatia 6:45.27 FA
3 6 Mindaugas Griškonis   Lithuania 6:45.90 FA
4 1 Gennaro Di Mauro   Italy 6:50.19 FB
5 5 Lucas Verthein   Brazil 7:02.87 FB
6 2 Trevor Jones   Canada 7:06.18 FB

Semifinal A/B 2 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 2 Stefanos Ntouskos   Greece 6:41.61 FA
2 4 Sverri Sandberg Nielsen   Denmark 6:44.00 FA
3 1 Aleksandr Vyazovkin   ROC 6:44.56 FA
4 3 Oliver Zeidler   Germany 6:45.16 FB
5 5 Bendegúz Pétervári-Molnár   Hungary 6:59.08 FB
6 6 Ryuta Arakawa   Japan 6:59.26 FB

Semifinal C/D 1 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 3 Álvaro Torres   Peru 7:02.49 FC
2 4 Quentin Antognelli   Monaco 7:06.03 FC
3 5 Dara Alizadeh   Bermuda 7:11.14 FC
4 6 Mohammed Al-Khafaji   Iraq 7:21.52 FD
5 2 Cris Nievarez   Philippines 7:26.05 FD
6 1 Husein Alireza   Saudi Arabia 7:53.99 FD

Semifinal C/D 2 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 3 Jordan Parry   New Zealand 6:57.70 FC
2 2 Abdelkhalek El-Banna   Egypt 6:58.84 FC
3 5 Jan Fleissner   Czech Republic 6:59.61 FC
4 1 Peter Purcell-Gilpin   Zimbabwe 7:01.72 FD
5 6 Vladislav Yakovlev   Kazakhstan 7:03.53 FD
6 4 Onat Kazaklı   Turkey 7:32.19 FD

Semifinal E/F 1 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 3 Félix Potoy   Nicaragua 7:45.02 FE
2 1 Privel Hinkati   Benin 7:49.46 FE
3 3 Rio Rii   Vanuatu 8:19.99 FF

Semifinal E/F 2 edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
1 3 Ignacio Vásquez   Dominican Republic 7:42.80 FE
2 1 Franck N'Dri   Ivory Coast 7:55.12 FE
3 2 Al-Hussein Gambour   Libya 7:55.98 FE
4 4 Abdulrahman Al-Fadhel   Kuwait 8:56.83 FF

Finals edit

Final F edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
30 2 Rio Rii   Vanuatu 7:49.82
31 1 Abdulrahman Al-Fadhel   Kuwait 8:32.67

Final E edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
25 4 Ignacio Vásquez   Dominican Republic 7:25.88
26 3 Félix Potoy   Nicaragua 7:28.00
27 2 Privel Hinkati   Benin 7:38.58
28 5 Franck N'Dri   Ivory Coast 7:42.55
29 1 Al-Hussein Gambour   Libya 7:47.64

Final D edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
19 2 Vladislav Yakovlev   Kazakhstan 7:03.37
20 4 Peter Purcell-Gilpin   Zimbabwe 7:03.85
21 1 Onat Kazaklı   Turkey 7:13.65
22 3 Mohammed Al-Khafaji   Iraq 7:18.65
23 5 Cris Nievarez   Philippines 7:21.28
24 6 Husein Alireza   Saudi Arabia 7:52.67

Final C edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
13 3 Jordan Parry   New Zealand 6:55.55
14 2 Abdelkhalek El-Banna   Egypt 7:00.72
15 5 Quentin Antognelli   Monaco 7:01.85
16 1 Jan Fleissner   Czech Republic 7:02.93
17 4 Álvaro Torres   Peru 7:03.69
18 6 Dara Alizadeh   Bermuda 7:09.91

Final B edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
7 4 Oliver Zeidler   Germany 6.44.44
8 3 Gennaro Di Mauro   Italy 6:47.38
9 1 Trevor Jones   Canada 6:48.51
10 5 Bendegúz Pétervári-Molnár   Hungary 6:50.45
11 6 Ryuta Arakawa   Japan 6:50.91
12 2 Lucas Verthein   Brazil 6:52.09

Final A edit

Rank Lane Rower Nation Time Notes
  4 Stefanos Ntouskos   Greece 6:40.45 OB
  3 Kjetil Borch   Norway 6:41.66
  2 Damir Martin   Croatia 6:42.58
4 5 Sverri Sandberg Nielsen   Denmark 6:42.73
5 6 Aleksandr Vyazovkin   ROC 6:49.09
6 1 Mindaugas Griškonis   Lithuania 6:57.60

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Rowing Competition Schedule". Tokyo 2020. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Qualification System – Games of the XXXII Olympiad – Rowing" (PDF). World Rowing Federation. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  3. ^ Anderson, Ian. "New Zealand's dual Olympic rowing gold medallist Mahe Drysdale retires". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Ondřej Synek". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  5. ^ "Why Do We Race 2000m? The History Behind the Distance". World Rowing. 1 May 2017. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  6. ^ "Rowing - Men's Single Sculls Results". olympics.com. Archived from the original on 18 July 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2021.