uNIvERSITY ROWING
>;Growing rowing through students – British university rowing
Regatta and the Henley Royal Regatta before
aiming for the European and World University
Championships.
>
“Many (high) school rowers will want to consider
their rowing when choosing a university,” says
Rennie. “The university websites provide details of
any scholarship activities. Many universities now
have structured rowing programmes and employ
full time or part time coaches.”
are seeing huge investment within the higher
education sector into sports facilities as more and
more the directors of sport convince their university
chancellors of the value of such investment in
terms of attracting students and in enhancing the
student experience.”
Rennie concludes, “University rowing in the UK is big – and growing all of the time – and we
Many of the athletes that go on to row for Great
Britain have a university rowing background.
Fiona Rennie, chair of rowing for BUCS describes,
“University rowers and alumni are the bedrock of
the GB squad and many first take up the sport
while studying. Many student rowers are included
within the under-23 squad and will progress to
the full squad.”
■ M. S. B.
Oxford Brookes women’s 4- and
coach Henry Bailhache Webb
winning gold at the BUCS regatta
2010
“We are very much aligned with the GB Rowing
team,” says Rennie, “their staff is at all of our events
and they run our Small Boats Head (regatta) for us
off the back of the first GB Rowing team assessment
in October.”
“The work between BUCS Rowing and the GB
Rowing team has helped to put in place a more
structured and aligned selection process based
on performance and linked to the GB Rowing
team development pathway for the selection and
formation of the FISU World University Rowing
Championships team,” says Rennie.
Some universities actively recruit rowers, says
Rennie, each using their own strategy. Some do
promotional activities at major rowing events or
school regattas and some use targeted mail outs.
© BUCS Rowing
