Woman wins silver medal in men’s rowing

There’s generally a small person in some of the boats to tell them when to row so they all stay on time. She also kind of drives because everyone else is looking the wrong way.

My best guess is that you weren't watching an actual event. Just a bunch of dudes and some tart on a boat.

Why do they need a driver? Can’t they see if they’re going straight based on the lane markers? Why isn’t not having a driver an issue in the 1, 2, or 4 person events? I also don’t understand why they can’t row in harmony without someone telling them, the 4-person teams do that fine.

Are you calling her the little man in the boat?

The coxswain is in charge of the boat. They are responsible for crew safety, which must be the prime concern. Along with steering, their role is to coach the crew. The cox acts as the coach's assistant, but in the absence of a coach, as is the case in a race, the cox becomes the coach.

So many questions, so much you apparently don't understand about the event ... of course you are the right person to question the basics of it :-)

In case Wikipedia is somehow blocked where you live: "[...] eight rowers, who propel the boat with sweep oars, and is steered by a coxswain, or 'cox'. [...] The cox steers the boat using a rudder and is normally seated at the stern of the boat. Because of the size, weight, and speed of the boat in comparison to the 4+ and 2+, it is generally considered unsafe to race the 8+ coxless or to have a bowloader cox."

(Queue all the puns about a female "cox" on the mens 8+)

I love when my ladies are packing a coxswain downstairs.

You have somehow reached this age in adulthood without knowing about coxswains. Your Daddy needs to pull you aside and have "the talk."

The 8 person sweep rowing boat has a 9th person that is the coxswain. I don't believe there are any gender requirements, but they are usually small/petite people. This may have to do with the relative length of the boat and how easy it is to damage the shell if it's not steered properly, and the need to synchronize the 8 rowers as well as keeping up with other boats in a race. In a practice the coach is on a motor boat alongside the rowing shell.

You’re correct I don’t know anything about the event, I have been watching a lot of random events on Peacock. I presume a women’s team could also have a male cox then, does it happen often? If there are no gender restrictions, there doesn’t seem to be a reason that men’s teams would mostly have a male cox and women’s teams would mostly have a female cox.

Yes, the British women's 8 won silver with a male cox.

No need to be a cox about it. Why should he got to Wikipedia when he can do what all of us who have been here over 20 years do? We come to the LetsRun brain trust for medical and relationship advice, career counseling, and information on events that are obscure to Track and Field people.

It takes a great amount of training to get there. You have to ride along in a boat with the ferocity of a tiger until you are near ready to drop dead.

A cox needs to be lightweight first and foremost. There are both males and females that fit that physical restriction.