SATURDAY, July 18th will see a new Olympic rowing discipline showcased in West Cork.

At the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, beach sprint rowing will make its historic debut. Before that, you can check it out at Duneen Beach in Clonakilty, as Ring Rowing Club is hosting the Ring Beach Sprints Regatta.

This marks the second of two new Rowing Ireland Beach Sprint League events, the first being Courtmacsherry Beach Sprints.

A spectator’s delight to watch, beach sprints are a high intensity, head-to-head rowing discipline that starts on foot with a competitor sprinting across the sand to launch their boat into the surf.

Once on the water, rowers slalom around two buoys, turn tightly around a third buoy 250 metres out, and row straight back to the shore.

The race reaches a dramatic climax as one crew member leaps out of the boat into the shallow water and sprints back up the beach to press or dive a buzzer on the finish line. Excitement is building among the clubs.

For more information on coastal rowing beach sprints, contact your local rowing club.