The 2004 Olympic rowing regatta featured multiple athletes achieving four consecutive gold medals, including Elisabeta Lipă's record 20-year span across five Olympic golds.
Key Facts
- Competitors
- 550
- Events contested
- 14
- Countries winning medals
- 22
- GB coxless four winning margin
- 0.08 seconds over Canada
- US men's eight wins overall
- 12th title, first since 1964
- Lipă's Olympic medal span
- 20 years (1984–2004), 8 medals total
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The 2004 Athens Summer Olympics required a dedicated aquatic venue for rowing, leading to the construction and use of the Schinias Olympic Rowing and Canoeing Centre. Athletes from across the world qualified through international competition to compete in 14 rowing disciplines representing the sport's full range of boat classes and gender categories.
Rowing events at the 2004 Athens Olympics were held at Schinias, with 550 athletes from 22 medal-winning nations competing across 14 events. Romania led the medal table, propelled by historic performances from Elisabeta Lipă and Georgeta Damian, while Great Britain's coxless four edged Canada by 0.08 seconds, Germany's Kathrin Boron matched four consecutive golds, and the United States won the men's eight for the first time since 1964.
Several individual records were set that remain benchmarks in Olympic rowing history: Lipă became the oldest rower and oldest endurance athlete to win Olympic gold, Matthew Pinsent secured his fourth consecutive gold without Steve Redgrave, and James Tomkins became the oldest male rower to claim Olympic gold. The US men's eight's preliminary heat time stood as a world best until 2012.
Result
at Schinias Olympic Rowing and Canoeing Centre, Greece