BACKGROUND: This study aimed to identify the relationship between the mean power output of 2000-m rowing ergometer performance with the peak power output obtained during an incremental test, in addition to verifying the possibility of using the 2000-m mean power as an intensity associated with VO2max. METHODS: Nineteen rowers (age 25.5±10.6 years; VO2peak: 65.4±5.8 mL/kg/min) completed an incremental test followed by a 2000-m familiarization test (day 1) and a 2000-m rowing ergometer test (day 2). During the incremental test, the peak power output (PVO2peak) and the exercise intensity thresholds were determined. The maximal oxygen uptake (VO2peak) was analyzed in both tests. RESULTS: The PVO2peak (284.8±44.7 W) presented the highest correlation coefficient (r=0.978) with 2000-m mean power (284.2±49.9 W) and was the only one included in stepwise regression explaining 96% of 2000-m mean power. VO2peak was lower in the incremental test (4.69±0.61 L/min) compared with the 2000-m rowing ergometer test (4.86±0.63 L/min; P=0.01) with a small bias limits of agreement (0.16±0.53 L/min). CONCLUSIONS: 2000-m mean power is a valid tool to estimate the PVO2peak and allow the achievement of VO2peak. Furthermore, the PVO2peak was the most important predictor of performance.
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