OLYMPIC SELECTION
WORLDWIDE
18
for international rowers, all roads
leading to Beijing traverse the enduring
process known as “selection”. Revered or
feared, the trials, testing and timelines
formulated in each country can be as
distinct as their cultures.
added four members in the women’s eight
while taking out Kim Crow and Sarah Cook
to focus on the pair.
© 2008 Getty Images
Rowers in boats qualifying at the Final
Olympic Qualification Regatta in Poland
must row in those boats if they row in
Beijing, which will impact final selections
for some countries. But in boats that have
already qualified, every seat is still subject
to change. Upsets at the French National
Rowing Championships in mid-April resulted
in selectors making several line-up changes
from last year for the first 2008 Rowing World
Cup in Munich. After selection trials and big
boat seat racing, Australia retained only four
crew members from last year’s men’s eight
when Athens Olympians David Dennis and
Steve Stewart came back on the scene, and
The world’s best coaches, such as
JuergenGrobler and MikeSpracklen –
masterminds of the British and Canadian
men’s crews respectively – are known for
the art of throwing their country’s top talent
on the grill and using their special recipes
of selection tools and analysis to create
the fastest crews with potential to feast on
Olympic gold. With the process often going
on for months, selections, with their enduring
tests, trials, and politics, could seem even
more arduous than spending a few minutes
racing 2 kilometres at the Games.
their rowers while athletes are asked to push
their limits with whatever scheme National
Federations devise.
This trust is essential according to two-time
World Champion Peter Reed, who is vying
for one of four seats in the high-profile British
men’s four, and especially during what he
says is the tensest time of the season when
rowers are racing directly against teammates
for their seat.
New Zealand High Performance
Manager Andrew Matheson (l)
and Olympic selector and
Secretary General of the
New Zealand Olympic
Committee, Barry Maister (r)
announce the New Zealand
rowing team for the Beijing
2008 Olympic Games.
Over the last few months, coaches and High
Performance Directors have also been under
pressure to get the mix of chemistry and
physiology right and win the trust of
“Juergen seems to be collecting endless data
on the athletes while he makes up his mind
about boats and crews for the Olympics.
I have no idea what he is planning. He keeps
his cards very close to his chest and no one
knows what he is thinking. Even though it
is really tough to be tested time after >>
