Henley Royal Regatta

Henley Royal Regatta

Five days in early July

The international rowing competition known as the Henley Regatta was first held in 1839. The long, straight, nearly two-mile stretch of the Thames River about 35 miles west of London made Henley an ideal location for oarsmen to compete—in fact, it was the site of the Olympic rowing competition in both 1908 and 1948, when London hosted the Olympic Games. The races became known as "royal" in 1851, when Prince Albert became the first member of the royal family to patronize the event.
The five-day Regatta's many events include races for eight-oared, four-oared, and pair-oared boats as well as sculling races for quadruple, double, and single sculls. The course takes six to seven minutes to row, and there are often two races taking place simultaneously. Although only male oarsmen were allowed to compete for 154 years, an open women's event was introduced in 1993. The so-called "Women's Henley," held annually a few weeks before the Royal Regatta, has grown rapidly in popularity.
In addition to being a world-class rowing competition for oarsmen from a dozen countries and more than 60 colleges and universities, the Henley Royal Regatta is also a huge lawn party attended by nearly half a million spectators. The hub of social interaction during Regatta week is the Stewards' Enclosure, an exclusive spectators' area located near the end of the course. Parties also take place in tents called "chalets," set up along the banks of the river, as well as in the parking lot, where people serve impressive meals from their cars.
The men traditionally dress in straw hats and rowing blazers and neckties, whose colors indicate what school, college, or club they once rowed for. The women put on their finest summer dresses and hats; short skirts, culottes, or slacks of any kind are forbidden.

CONTACTS:
Henley Royal Regatta
Henley-on-Thames
Oxfordshire, RG9 2LY United Kingdom
44-14-9157-2153; fax: 44-14-9157-5509
www.hrr.co.uk