Rowing: Investment starting to earn return

Jul 19 2008 by Stuart Rayner, The Journal

THE growing strength of North East rowing was underlined yesterday when Kieren Emery and Stuart McCluskey were named in Great Britain’s squad for the World Junior Championships. But their club captain, Chris Parsons, is resigned to the region’s best young talent having to move south to fulfil their potential.

The pair underlined their talent at Henley Regatta this month as half of the first wholly North East club crew in 134 years to lift a trophy at the prestigious event. Emery and McCluskey led Tyne Rowing Club to victory over London’s lightweights in the Wyfold coxless fours alongside Will Fletcher and James Harris.

Emery has been rewarded with a place in Britain’s four at the World Junior Championship in Linz, Austria, starting on Tuesday. His club-mate McCluskey will row in the eight.

With Durham University head coach Wade Hall Craggs coaching the Tyne four it was another example of how the work between the North East’s top universities and its rowing clubs is paying dividends.

“The universities particularly have been investing heavily in the sport and it’s starting to pay off,” Parsons said. “We get help from both universities and it’s much appreciated. Durham have a long history in rowing and Newcastle University have recently appointed former Italy Under-23 coach Angelo Savarino as their head coach. We’ve had investment from the Lottery and so on. Sport England have just given us a grant for a new set of access steps on the Tyne because they recognised we’re bursting at the seams. There’s also a new £1m boathouse at Durham so it shows the investment is there.

“In the past we’ve had a few individuals who have done well but now we’re reaching critical mass. We’ve had a bit of a revelation in our juniors and it’s driven the senior men on. They were the fastest non-qualifiers for the Wyfold despite having an equipment failure on the day. Tees got into the eights competition and Durham School were in it for the first time in a while.” As well as coaching Great Britain’s coxed four to gold at the 2000 World Championships, Hall Craggs rowed in the single scull at the 1992 Olympics. There are hopes the Tyne four might follow in his footsteps.

“I don’t know if the 2012 Olympics will come round a little bit quickly for them but they’re certainly real prospects,” Parsons said. “Kieren’s already on the Great Britain programme and receives funding from the Lottery.

“Unfortunately if you do break into the Great Britain elite squad you’re based in Cavesham so the best rowers from the North East will continue to have to move south.” Meanwhile a British men’s eight containing three North East students were one of five crews to win their heats on the opening day of the world U23 championships in Brandenburg, Germany.

Youth Olympic gold medallist Nathaniel Reilly-O’Donnell from Durham University was joined by Newcastle University students Fred Gill and Mason Durant as the eight saw off Spain and Netherlands. The trio are three of 14 North East-based rowers in the squad.

The women’s single and double sculls, the men’s pair and double sculls were GB’s other heat winners.