As the Regatta was instituted long before national or international rowing federations were established, it occupies a unique position in the world of rowing. The governing body of rowing in England has not jurisdiction over the event as Henley has its own rules. It is a very social event with many quality Henley Regatta hospitality services in operation.

Unlike multi-lane international regattas, Henley still operates a knock-out draw with only two boats racing in each heat. This involved organising up to a hundred races on a number of the 5 days. Each race is started at 300 second intervals to ensure the event comes to completion in time.

The standard international length of a course is 2,000m, which is 112m shorter than Henley, which stands at 1 mile 550 yards. It takes approximately seven minutes to cover, so that there are often two races at once on the Course for much of the day. The Finals are raced on the last day of the event, meaning that the number of races needs to be cut down each day leading up to the last.

There are 4 races for Quad Sculls, 6 classes of race for Eights, races for Double Sculls and Coxless Pairs and 5 for Fours (2 coxed and 3 coxless). This means there are 19 events overall. Ladies and Men’s programs also contain single sculling races. 1993 was the first year women competed over the Course in a full Regatta event when a new event for women single scullers was inaugurated. 2001 saw the introductions of new events for Men’s and Women’s Quadruple Sculls which came a year after an open race for Ladies Eights was brought in.

Crews from around the world hed to Henley each year from countries including the Netherlands, Croatia and the Ukraine. 98 crews came from abroad last year. A more diverse entry group and higher quality racing crews will mean this year’s Regatta will be better than ever. There will be plenty of corporate entertainment and things to see and do for all ages.