ABOUT SYKES RACING
We Build Boats. Start to Finish. Beginners to Champions.
Sykes Rowing is Australia's leading rowing boat manufacturer. We've been building boats in Geelong, Victoria since 1966, and over that time we've earned a reputation for quality, design, durability and uncompromising commitment to performance. Whether rowers are new to the sport or world champions, we have a boat to suit them.
We're proud of our Australian heritage and fiercely protective of our reputation. Our hulls are designed and built in our Geelong facility, fitted out with proven Sykes OEM components, and customised to your spec. Whether the hull is locally made or imported, every boat leaves with the same top-tier components.
Our Story
Sykes was founded in 1966 by Jeff Sykes, a then-23-year-old apprentice boatbuilder who'd just won the Australian Sculling Championship in a 12.5 kg cedar single scull he'd designed and built himself. From that first revolutionary boat, Sykes has grown into the largest rowing boat manufacturer in Australia, with hulls competing at every level from learn-to-row through to the Olympic Games.
In 2003, Jeff sold the company to Jeff Lawrence. In 2009 the company moved to its purpose-built Breakwater facility on Tucker Street, where boats are still designed, moulded, fitted and finished today. Major milestones since include the acquisition of Resolute Rowing in the USA (2019), selection as Rowing Australia's exclusive small-boat training fleet supplier for the 2028 Los Angeles and 2032 Brisbane Olympic cycles (2024), the Empacher distribution partnership (2025), and the Quickstep acquisition (2025) which brings large-format additive manufacturing into the Sykes capability.
