over the victory ceremony pontoon during
World Rowing events.
>
Through these times, the men’s and women’s
European Championships were brought
together into annual world championships.
Championships for lightweights and regattas
for under-23s were also introduced. The FISA
development programme began with support
from Olympic Solidarity in the 1970s. In 1976
women entered the Olympic rowing arena.
Following the 1988 Olympics, Thomi Keller
spontaneously awarded the FISA Medal of Honour
to Peter-Michael Kolbe and Pertti Karpinnen to
commemorate one of the greatest rivalries in
the history of the sport and recognising their
exceptional talent and sportsmanship. This shaped
the idea of the Thomas Keller Medal which was
continued by the Keller family following Thomi’s
passing in 1989 and first awarded to the great
Norwegian oarsman Alf Hansen in 1990.
Each year, the winner is carefully selected by the
ThomasKeller Medal committee, after a broad
international nomination process, to ensure that
the true values which Thomi so strongly believed
in are represented in this award.
Athletes were Thomi’s pride and joy. He followed
every championship and Olympic race, kept
a close eye on officials, knew every detail of
procedure and equipment, and greeted every
established international by his or her first
name.
This year the medal was presented
to Kathrin Boron on Sunday 12 July
in Lucerne, Switzerland, during
the Finals of the final stage of
the Rowing World Cup.
■ Adapted from a piece by Christopher Dodd, journalist and historian
at the River & Rowing Museum, Henley, Great Britain
