35° 15’S 149°08’E
Australia
The prominent green and gold colours, the
chant of “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi”
– wherever rowing goes in the world there is
always a strong contingent of Australian
rowers and supporters.
In a country that prides itself in its sporting prowess
across a number of sports, rowing has held its own
status. Perhaps the biggest turn for the sport, which has
a history dating back to the 1800s, was in 1996 when
their men’s four struck gold at the Atlanta Olympics.
James Tomkins, Australia’s
all-time most medalled rower.
The four of James Tomkins, Drew Ginn, Mike McKay and
Nick Green became known as the Oarsome Foursome
and they placed rowing into the psyche of the nation.
Tomkins went on to medal at the next two Olympic
Games in the pair including gold with Ginn at the 2004
Athens Olympics.
Elite rowing in Australia centres around the Australian
Institute of Sport (AIS) in Canberra which contains all
the facilities necessary for top athletic performance
and includes a top talent identification programme.
The AIS has a joint venture with Rowing Australia called
the National Rowing Centre of Excellence. Their aim is
to achieve sustainable medal-winning performances
with an objective of three gold medals at the 2012
London Olympics.
