Head Of The Charles Regatta Will Return To Boston This Fall

BOSTON (CBS) -- The Head Of The Charles is coming back to Boston this fall. The coronavirus pandemic kept the annual event away in 2020, but the Regatta is scheduled to return on the weekend of October 22-24.

"Our long wait is finally over and we look forward to hosting the world rowing community back in Boston this fall," Regatta Executive Director Fred Schoch said in a statement. "As circumstances surrounding the pandemic have continued to significantly improve in Massachusetts, we want to let our community know that we are in full planning mode for October and look forward to providing a safe event for our competitors, our volunteers, and our spectators."

This year's event will feature two hours of extra racing on Friday, Oct. 22, allowing more athletes to participate.

Detailed health and safety protocols for the event will be released in the summer.

About 11,000 athletes participate in the Head of the Charles each year and more than 1,800 volunteers work the event.

An economic analysis determined that the Regatta injected over $88 million into the Massachusetts economy during the 2019 event.

The only other time the regatta was canceled was 1996 due to a rain and wind storm.