U.S. #5694-97
2022 58¢ Women's Rowing
Issue Date: May 13, 2022
First Day City: Philadelphia, PA
Type of Stamp: Commemorative
Printed by: Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd.
Printing Method: Offset
Format: Pane of 20
Self-Adhesive
Quantity Printed: 18,000,000
Women's rowing began in the early 19th century. However, due to gender stereotypes, women's races were few and far between. It wasn't until the 20th century that things really took off.
During the Victorian era, it was believed certain activities were too strenuous for a woman's health. One such activity was rowing. Even when women were allowed to participate, they had to wear cumbersome outfits (including stiff corsets), which restricted their movements. The only competitions that included women were informal ones between local club teams. This began to change with the first national events in the early 1900s and the first international events in the 1950s. Still, it wasn't until 1976 that women's rowing events were added to the Olympics, though the distance was only 1,000 meters, half that of the men's races.
With the introduction of Title IX and other policies that fought against gender discrimination, women's rowing eventually reached the point it is at today. There has been an especially noticeable increase in participation at the college level, and it is an NCAA sport. Thanks to advocates like Penny Chuter (Great Britain), Ingrid Dieterle (Germany), and Nely Gambon de Vos (Netherlands), women now race the same distance as men (2,000 meters). There are even instances when co-ed teams compete. In 2022, the United States Postal Service issued four Forever stamps honoring Women's Rowing. They commemorate the obstacles early women rowers overcame as well as the impressive accomplishments of female athletes today.