Rowing was approved as the 22nd sport to be sponsored by the Southeastern Conference and the 13th women’s sport on Aug. 23, 2024.

There are currently four members of the conference who sponsor the sport of rowing and will participate in the Championship: Alabama, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. It was announced on Wednesday that the SEC Rowing Championship will take place in Melton Lake in Oak Ridge, Tenn.

“We look forward to adding the sport of rowing in the Southeastern Conference and bringing our first rowing championship to Oak Ridge, Tennessee,†SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said in a press release. “We believe Oak Ridge will provide an excellent venue for our student-athletes, and we appreciate the work of the Oak Ridge Rowing Association in hosting the event.â€

The Melton Lake Rowing Venue has more than 30 miles of well-sheltered and calm water with fully buoyed 7-lane 1,000 and 2,000-meter racecourses for sprint races.

January 30, 1961: Howard Schnellenberger was hired as end coach, one of two vacancies filled over the week by Paul W. “Bear†Bryant, the other being Elwood Kettler. The two new coaches replaced Jerry Claiborne, the new head coach at Virginia Tech, and Bob Ford, the new defensive line coach at Georgia.