26 March 2025

By Tim Koch.

Tim Koch puts his elbows up.

In 2015, row2k.com posted a piece credited to Rowing Canada Aviron titled Why the Maple Leaf is important for Canadian Rowers. Recent events have made this ten-year-old article worth rereading.

The article begins by pointing out for those who do not know that Canada’s iconic maple leaf flag is only sixty years old. Prior to 1965, the Canadian Red Ensign was usually flown. Strangely, it was never formally adopted as the country’s official national flag, it was the Union Flag, the de facto flag of the United Kingdom, that had this role.

While it is common for many rowing countries to display their nation’s flag on the oars of their national team, Canada has a unique tradition in that the maple leaf is only displayed at the two most important international rowing events: the Olympic Games and the season ending World Championship Regatta. There is no other regatta where the maple leaf is on a national team member’s oar, not even for the Rowing World Cup circuit races.

The row2k article concludes:

As part of the tradition, there is a discreet ceremony… before the regatta begins whereby the athletes are presented with the maple leaf decals. It is a moment that is rife with symbolism. The presentation officially acknowledges that the athlete has earned the right to be there and that they are at the top of their game…. And regardless of the outcome of the competition, the maple leaf is always stripped from the blade at the close of the regatta.

The full 2015 article on row2k.com is here. A video of the “discrete ceremony” is here.