Abstract

In 1960, Britain hosted the European Women’s Rowing Championships at the Welsh Harp reservoir in Willesden, London: it was a milestone in the history of British rowing. The significance of this event to male and female amateur rowing communities in Britain at the time – communities that were still administratively independent in 1960 – is considered here using documentary and oral history sources. ‘Home advantage’ here refers to the immediate and underlying advantages of a home Championship to athletes and administrators in Britain, and not to the competitive outcome; indeed, the British women’s team performance was unremarkable. The different objectives of the Amateur Rowing Association (ARA), the Women’s Amateur Rowing Association (WARA) and individual British athletes, and the extent to which these were realized through the hosting of the event are explored. Analysis addresses the intersection of gender and sport in sporting administration, the impact of sporting opportunities on individual athletes, and the interaction of individual narrative accounts with the written record. It is argued that, with this historic home Championship serving multiple purposes, the advantages it afforded were experienced unevenly by different elements of the British rowing community, and that the methodological approach deployed is essential in showing this.

摘要

1960年，英国在伦敦威尔斯登的威尔士竖琴水库举办了欧洲女子赛艇锦标赛：这是英国赛艇历史上的一个里程碑。此处使用文献和口述历史资料来考察此事件对当时英国的男女业余划船社区的重要性（该社区在1960年仍在行政上独立）。这里的“主场优势”指的是家庭锦标赛对英国运动员和管理人员的直接和潜在优势，而不是竞争成果。确实，英国女队的表现并不出色。业余划船协会（ARA），女子业余划船协会（WARA）和各个英国运动员的不同目标，并探讨了通过举办活动实现这些目标的程度。分析涉及体育行政管理中的性别与体育的交集，体育机会对个人运动员的影响以及个人叙事记录与书面记录之间的相互作用。有人认为，由于这项具有历史意义的家庭锦标赛有多种用途，因此英国赛艇界的不同成员不平衡地享受到它所提供的优势，而采用的方法论方法对证明这一点至关重要。