4 May 2017

He or she is the eyes and ears of the boat, and let’s not forget, the voice – and some people would even add, the brain!

In an eight, you cannot possibly do without this person…

Is it the stroke, rowers in the ‘engine room’, person in the bow, maybe the coach or…?

While, of course, all these people are important for moving the boat, for a week in May, we are to celebrate the person in the ninth seat, the coxswain.

On 8-14 May, USRowing celebrates the coxes during the annual Coxswain Appreciation Week. This is the fourth year the organisation is commemorating the smallest person in the boat.

‘One of my favorite weeks of the year! It is a wonderful feeling to see so much love for the coxies. I’m honored and grateful to be a part of what has become an extremely cool tradition,’ said Peter Cipollone, 2004 Olympic gold medalist cox to USRowing. Cipollone, together with two-time Olympic champion cox in 2008 and 2012, Mary Whipple-Murray, are honorary chairs for this event.

During the ‘cox week’, USRowing will be sharing photos and stories on social media, including hosting a coxswain Q&A session on the organisation’s Twitter account. If you like to get involved, like and follow USRowing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Tag your photos and messages with #CoxswainAppreciation.

Winners will be selected from messages posted on 8-14 May.

If you are looking for some inspiration, USRowing gives you the following hints:

Coxswain toss picture

Story of how a coxswain made the win

Surprise your coxswains with a creative sign/’thank you’ note to hang in your boathouse

Relive a moment where you witnessed your coxswain master a tough move or a hard situation

Cipollone and Whipple-Murray will do a video tutorial/Q&A for the teams of the two winning posts.

Winners will be announced on 16 May.