World University Rowing Championships 2010, Szeged, Hungary (13-15th August)

This year seven Queen’s men teamed up with two UCD men to form the Irish entry in the 2010 World University Rowing Championships in Szeged, Hungary. The crew was coached by Queen’s head coach Mark Fangen-Hall.

On day one, the crew got off to a slow start, finishing third in their heat behind Great Britain and France, who both qualified for the ‘A’ final.

The crew now had to lay down a solid row in the repchage if they were to advance to the ‘A’ final. After the first day they were fifth fastest on paper, so the ‘A’ final was not beyond reach yet.

Saturday, the day of the repchage, the Ireland crew powered off the blocks and dominated the first 1500m, cementing their place in the ‘A’ final, ahead of Switzerland (who also qualified), Italy, Hungary and China.

On Sunday, the day of the final and the closing race of the championships, the Ireland crew drew lane one. From lane one Ireland, France, Estonia, Great Britain, Poland and Switzerland all went under starter’s orders. The Irish crew, revitalised from Saturday’s repchage, approached the final with a do or die mentality, as they knew they were up against extremely tough opposition. The crews attacked the start, with Great Britain taking an early lead by 500m, with Estonia, Ireland and Poland hot on their tail. Through 1000m, Great Britain had increased their lead to a length over Estonia, who had three quarters of a length on Ireland who were inching out Poland. In the crucial third 500, Ireland hammered down the legs, pushing off Poland. By 1500m the crew had broken Poland, moving a length on them in 500m.

By now, Great Britain had maintained their lengths lead over Estonia, who had clear water on the Irish crew who sat in third.

The Irish crew had a fantastic closing 500m, which earned them bronze medal in a time of 6:06.71. This was the first time in 30 years that an Irish eight has taken a podium place at a World event. This is a sign of the continuous improvement in Irish Rowing over the last few years, which has seen with it many other successes, particularly at University level. Hopefully these fine athletes can continue to row, develop further and raise the profile of Irish Rowing even more in the foreseeable future.

Congratulations to the nine strong crew!

Team Ireland:

• (b) Dave Neale (UCD)
• (2) Jonathan Mitchell (QUB)
• (3) Eoin MacDomhnaill (QUB)
• (4) Colin Williamson (QUB)
• (5) Finbar Manning (UCD)
• (6) Abdulrahman Mohamed (QUB)
• (7) Marc Butler (QUB)
• (s) James Graham (QUB)
• (c) Andrew Tubman (QUB)

Queen’s men’s second eight are due to compete in the European University Rowing Championships in Amsterdam, Holland from 19th to the 22nd of August.

Results

Friday Heats ; M8+ Repêchage ; M8+ Final A

Fresher Recruitment!

If you are coming to Queens in September, or are looking to join a new club in the coming academic year, the boat club will be happy to have you! No previous rowing experience is necessary, the club competes at all levels from beginner to International standard.

Joining the boat club will get you exceptionally fit, provides opportunities to travel, allows you to take on positions of responsibility to enhance your CV and is a great way to make new friends.

If you are interested and would like more information please e-mail the appropriate Novice Manager(s):

Pre-Season Training

Whether you are a returning rower or a new member to Queen's Rowing, now is the time to begin preparation for the upcoming season. Summer training programmes are now available to keep the fitness ticking over or gear you up for your first season at Queen's.

Contact Queen's Head Coach, Mark Fangen-Hall (headcoach@queensrowing.org), to introduce yourself and have your personalised training programme sent out.

Men's Senior A VIII+ 2010 Irish University Champions, British University Elite 8+ Champions, Marlow Regatta Senior 8+ Sprint Champions and Temple Challenge Cup Semi-Finalists

Left to right: Eoin Macdomhnaill, Christopher Coyle, Marc Butler, Gavin Meek, Harry Rhys Davies (cox), James Graham (Captain), Abdulrahman Mohamed, Damian Hannon and Jonathan Mitchell.

Men's Senior B VIII+ 2010 British University Intermediate 8+ Champions, Marlow Regatta IM1 8+ Champions, Marlow Regatta IM1 8+ Sprint Champions, Boat Race Victors and Temple Challenge Cup Quarter-Finalists

Left to right: Mark Jamison, Patrick Beirne, Declan Gollogly, Trevor McKnight, Peter Gillanders, Nathan Oliver, Andrew Tubman (cox), Charles Cunningham and William Howell.

---

Captains' Welcome

Zoe Patterson & James Graham, Queen's Rowing Ladies and Men's captains 2009/2010

The past year has seen the Men’s and Women’s Clubs flourish, thanks to the enthusiasm and dedication of the rowers, coaches and alumni. Under the guidance of our full time professional coach, Mark Fangen-Hall, we have achieved much success at home and abroad.

The men’s club currently hold the title of Irish National and University Champions in the Novice and Intermediate VIII categories. The senior boat placed 17th out of 420 in London Head of the River and equalled the Temple Challenge Cup record to the barrier in Henley Royal Regatta. Likewise the women’s crews have performed very well and their achievements include Irish University Champions in the Novice VIII, Silver in the British University Championships Intermediate VIII and winners of the Senior University Boat Race.

Queen’s University is an exceptional location for rowing. The River Lagan is right on our doorstep which provides a 4km stretch of relatively sheltered water. In addition we have a world class Physical Education Centre on campus with cutting edge land training equipment.

As well as being highly competitive, the boat club has a strong social aspect to it. We believe the student experience should be about achieving your full potential academically and in sport while making friendships that last a lifetime.

As Captains for the year ahead, we aim to build on the success of the past year and look forward to the challenge of taking our club to the next level.

It's an exciting time for Queen's Rowing and we hope that you will be a part of it!

Regards,
Zoe Patterson and James Graham