Improve the Stroke - Sweep Finish Body Position   (+ Common Problems)

Please look at the examples below and review your positions or that of your crew. Below, Anthony Edwards, five times Olympic athlete, demonstrates common issues.
​
​We suggest before rowing each session and occasionally having the crew sit at the finish and ensure that their hand grip, body posture, and elbow positions are perfect. Understanding the correct positions and maintaining them under pressure is very important.

Better performance and a balanced boat will be the result.
Correct Position:

We see Eddy demonstrating the correct position at the finish in a sweep boat.

The secret is to sit tall (not slumped) and hold the inside elbow in a powerful natural position and the outside forearm at the same angle as the shaft. Ensure that the outside hand is allowed to swivel on the oar whilst maintaining a relaxed grip.

A relaxed grip ensures that the outside shoulder is not forced down at the finish, and the maximum length of stroke is achieved.​

For more info, please see:  
Leaning away from the rigger:

​​Here Eddy demonstrates the athlete leaning away from the rigger. This weaker position is usually caused by the outside elbow and shoulder dropping at the finish. If the athlete keeps their elbow out and allows their hand to swivel on the end of the oar, this will help to correct the issue. 

Another cause is when athletes try to balance the boat with their body.  
​
This also tends to result in the oar button being pulled away from the gate:​
The coxswain in an 8+ can see this problem and let the crew member know.
Leaning towards the rigger:

This issue is usually caused by the athlete feathering with their rigger side shoulder rather than their wrist. Relatively easily corrected by sitting tall. Another cause is when athletes try to balance the boat with their body. This rarely works as crew members will work against each other. If all the crew stay positioned in the boat's centreline, a better balance will result.  

In this video, Kellie discusses how to control balance with your pelvis:
The coxswain in an 8+ can see this problem and let the crew member know.
Thumbs on top of the handle:

Having thumbs on the top of the handle in a sweep boat is a serious issue in that it means that the grip on the oar is weaker, and therefore a crab is more likely with potentially disastrous results. Additionally, it makes feathering with the inside hand and swivelling the outside hand more difficult.
Wrists on the wrong angle:
​
As you can see here, Eddie is demonstrating the incorrect hand and arm positions.
​Letting the outside elbow flow out and the outside wrist swivel on the handle will help.

In the video below, Eddie demonstrates a few exercises to improve technique:
Not allowing the outside hand to swivel:

Here the outside hand is not swivelling on the end of the oar. This means that the wrist impedes the end of the stroke with less length and less relaxation.

Also, see the little finger on the end of the oar. This also prevents the hand from swivelling on the oar and can lead to injury if the boat is unstable at specific parts of the stroke.

Here we demonstrate issues for beginners:  ​
Hands too close together:

​In this example, the body position is generally good, but the inside hand is too far away from the rigger.  This makes the finish shorter and makes feathering difficult.  We suggest using a rubber band to correct this issue as in the below video:​