A Rare Behind The Scenes Look Inside A Japan Boat Racing School

Compatriot and U.S. driver Jimmy Spithill was left waiting for his first after coming up short in five finals. There was little between Australia and the U.S. at the start, but the home boat quickly surged away to win by 38.5 seconds, with Spain in third. After enduring one year of hard work and rigorous training, the rookie racers graduate from the Boat Racer Training School. After one year of day in and day out living, working and studying together, at the graduation ceremony it all gets a bit emotional for both rookie and instructor alike.

For the longest time I couldn’t work out why boat racing was so popular here, then I found out it’s one of the few sports that people can legally bet on. God knows what would happen if they opened a Ladbrokes in Tokyo. Britain skipper Ben Ainslie offered his team’s boat to Japan immediately after the end of racing on Day 1, accepting he was to blame for the incident. Britain withdrew from the second day in Sydney, meaning there were just seven teams contesting the last two fleet races.

Once a race begins, boats fight for the best position entering the first turn marker. Race winners are often decided on the very first turn of the race. The first boat across the line after three laps is the winner, with the first three finishers deciding the payouts for bets.

Yeah, I’ve never understood the restrictions on betting here. Illegal gambling on the likes of baseball is obviously rife as the recent sumo scandal proved, and yet 競艇 betting is allowed for football. And maybe next time I’ll get a result, allowing me to add financial gain to the fun.

To prevent the spread of COVID-19, many events have been canceled. As a Premium user you get access to the detailed source references and background information about this statistic. Similar to other water and land-based motorsport where a minimum dry weight requirement includes the driver, rules require men to weigh in at 50 kg or more, while women must weigh in at 47 kg or more. If any competitor is short of the minimum weight, their boat will be loaded with additional ballast weight to compensate. A Kyōtei race is conducted on man-made lakes with a 600-meter oval boat course. There are 24 kyōtei stadiums in Japan, all of which refer to themselves as BOAT RACE courses.

Bettors can purchase seven varieties of tickets, ranging from wagers on one boat to win (tanshō) to as many as three boats to place or show with bets made in ¥100 increments. This style of betting is also shared by horse and bicycle racing. The distinctive form of hydroplane racing called kyōtei is one of just a few types of gambling allowed under Japanese law. Proceeds from races are used to fund local municipalities and support the activities of nongovernmental organizations. Prior to the start of a race, competitors conduct a practice start and run a few laps around the course to practice their straight runs and cornering. These ensure that their boats are functioning properly, and also provide the betting public with useful information.