Big waves makes for great racing at the British Rowing Offshore Championships
The British Rowing Offshore Championships returned for its second year to Sandbanks Beach, Poole, between the 18 and 19 August
Competitors prepare to race at the British Rowing Offshore Championships (c) WEROW
Sandbanks provided a spectacular backdrop to the 2018 British Rowing Offshore Championships.
The finals were raced on Sunday in bouncy conditions, with swells of up to 1 meter along the 6km course making for some great racing.
In the standout race of the Championships, only two seconds separated gold and silver in the coastal women’s single sculls. Fiona Carmichael of Mayflower Rowing Club managed to just get her feet on the sand first ahead of Maria Pelven of Sweden’s Helsingborgs Roddklub, and with a sprint to the line Carmichael claimed gold, successfully defending her 2017 title.
Also defending his title was Peter Berg from Helsingborgs Roddklub, dominating the coastal men’s single sculls race and taking the win by over a minute, ahead of VK Slavia Praha in silver and Jersey in bronze.
In the open coastal coxed quads, there was a surprising win by Tyrian Rowing Club , as they converted their power and pace from training on the Thames to offshore rowing, taking a commanding win, ahead of Canford Crocs in silver and Jersey in bronze.
Mayflower ORC dominated the coastal women’s coxed quad, taking the win by over a minute ahead of Exmouth Rowing Club and Tideway Scullers in bronze.
It was a powerful row by the composite double of Exmouth Rowing Club and Tideway Scullers, in the coastal women’s double sculls who smashed the opposition and hit the finish line over three minutes ahead of the composite crew of Wiseman’s Bridge Rowing Association and Welsh Sea in silver, and Welsh Sea in bronze.
In the men’s double, the composite crew of Bexhill ARC and Tideway Scullers school put in a classy row to take gold, ahead of Southsea RC in silver and Jersey in bronze.
57 crews competed over the course of the two day Championships with heats raced on the Saturday afternoon, ahead of finals on Sunday. There was a party vibe on the beach with tunes being expertly mixed under the Dorset sunshine. The British Rowing Offshore Championships followed the hugely successful Commonwealth Beach Rowing Sprint Championships which saw Vanuatu claim their first ever Commonwealth gold.
Our official event photographers, WEROW were down on the beach for the British Rowing Offshore Championships. Head to the WEROW website to pick up your photos from the weekend.
The 2018 British Rowing Offshore Championships also doubled up as a qualifier for the World Rowing Coastal Championships set to take place in Victoria, Canada from 11 to 14 October 2018.
