Background
This was the 23rd appearance of the event. Rowing had been on the programme in 1896 but was cancelled due to bad weather. The single sculls has been held every time that rowing has been contested, beginning in 1900. Seven of the 21 single scullers from the 1996 Games returned: gold medallist Xeno Müller of Switzerland, silver medallist Derek Porter of Canada, fifth-place finisher (and 1992 silver medallist) Václav Chalupa of the Czech Republic, seventh-place finisher Rob Waddell of New Zealand, eighth-place finisherCompetition format
This rowing event is a single scull event, meaning that each boat is propelled by a single rower. The "scull" portion means that the rower uses two oars, one on each side of the boat; this contrasts with sweep rowing in which each rower has one oar and rows on only one side (not feasible for singles events). The competition consists of multiple rounds. Finals were held to determine the placing of each boat; these finals were given letters with those nearer to the beginning of the alphabet meaning a better ranking. Semifinals were named based on which finals they fed, with each semifinal having two possible finals. The course used the 2000 metres distance that became the Olympic standard in 1912. During the first round four quarterfinal heats, each with 6 boats, were held. The winning boat in each heat advanced to the semifinals, while all others were relegated to the repechages. The repechages offered the rowers a chance to qualify for the semi-final. Placing in the repechages determined which semifinal the boat would race in. Four heats were held, with 5 boats each. The top two boats in each repechage moved on to the A/B semifinals, with the bottom three boats going to the C/D semifinals. Four semifinals were held, two each of A/B semifinals and C/D semifinals. For each semifinal race, the top three boats moved on to the better of the two finals, while the bottom three boats went to the lesser of the two finals possible. For example, a second-place finish in an A/B semifinal would result in advancement to the A final. The fourth and final round was the finals. Each final determined a set of rankings. The A final determined the medals, along with the rest of the places through 6th. The B final gave rankings from 7th to 12th, the C from 13th to 18th, and so on. Thus, to win a medal rowers had to finish in either the top one of their quarterfinal or top two of their repechage heat and top three of their A/B semifinal to reach the A final.Schedule
All times areResults
Quarterfinals
The winner of each heat advanced to the A/B semifinals, remainder went to the repechage.Quarterfinal 1
Quarterfinal 2
Quarterfinal 3
Quarterfinal 4
Repechage
The first two in each heat qualified for semifinals A/B, with the remainder going to semifinals C/D.Repechage heat 1
Repechage heat 2
Repechage heat 3
Repechage heat 4
Semifinals
The semifinals were held on 21 September 2000. For the C/D semifinals, the first three in each heat qualified for Final C, with the remainder going to Final D. Similarly, for the A/B semifinals, the top three went to Final A and the bottom three to Final B.Semifinal C/D 1
Semifinal C/D 2
Semifinal A/B 1
Semifinal A/B 2
Finals
Final D
Final C
Final B
Final A
Results summary
References
External links