Varsity Rowing Season Wraps with Numerous Medals
Bright future ahead for Trent Excalibur rowing
Trent Rowing finished up the season with outstanding performances in the two final regattas: the Ontario University Championships (OU’s) and the Canadian University Championships (CU’s) held in St. Catharine’s.
First year student, Spencer Kielar came home with gold in the lightweight men’s single in both regattas.
“I was very happy with my performance at CU’s. I knew that if I had a shot I needed to come out of the gate strong and not let up the whole way,” said Mr. Kielar who has also been selected to attend the PanAm qualifier in Rio at the end of the month.
Fresh off participating in the Youth Olympics, first year student Grace VandenBroek brought home a silver in the women’s single at OU’s and a bronze in the same category at CU’s.
Both Mr. Kielar and Ms. VandenBroek are a part of the NextGen Hub program. This program is a partnership between Rowing Canada, Peterborough Rowing club and Trent University to help identify and train athletes who show promise of completing on the world stage.
“The NextGen Hub establishes a standard that everyone can’t help but aspire too. When you have world class athletes training right alongside club athletes it gives great depth to the program,” said James Dyer, head coach.
Other highlights include a silver at OU’s and CU’s for Mr. Kielar and Dayton Kelly in the men’s double and men’s pair. The men’s varsity eight captured the silver medal at OU’s as did the men’s four.
The novice men’s eight came home with gold edging out McGill who had beat them in the previous regatta.
The novice men’s coaching staff of Julianna Stonehouse, Mark Moyer and Kristy Smith were named OUA novice men’s coaches of the year. “This distinction is such an honour as it is voted on by our peers,” said Ms. Stonehouse.
“We saw a tremendous build this season with star performances from brand new athletes, supported by a steadfast crew of veterans. We are excited to see the momentum continue to build over the winter as we prepare for spring racing,” said Mr. Dyer. There is no question that Trent Excalibur Rowing is set up for more success in the years to come. The formula of good coaching, athlete leadership and strong partnerships is proving to be a winning combination.”