RIP Tony Lorrimer (1946-2024)

British Rowing was sad to hear of the sudden death of Nottingham RC President Tony Lorrimer

Tony was due to have raced in a Masters G quad at the British Rowing Masters Championships this coming weekend with clubmate Gill Prescott and friends Birgith Sims and Farrell Mossop from Kingston RC. The crew will race as a tribute to him, with Chris Waumsley from Nottingham and Union RC substituting, and they have received permission from the Race Committee Chair for them all to wear Nottingham RC colours in his honour.

Nottingham RC will present a blade salute shortly before racing starts on Sunday morning, when there will be a one minute silence.

Tony was a Life Member of British Rowing. He learned to row at Shrewsbury School, and started coaching alongside his own rowing as soon as he left school. He coached the GB Women’s coxed quadruple scull, of which his wife Liz was a member, at the 1974 World Rowing Championships, and gained the Amateur Rowing Association’s Gold Coaching Award in 1975.

In recent years he became chairman of the Head of the Trent and of Nottingham City Regatta while continuing to race seriously in Masters events. A career highlight was winning gold at the World Rowing Masters Championships in Libourne, France in 2022 in a Masters I (average age 75+) coxed four. Tony was also a major force in masters indoor rowing. As well as racing at indoor competitions, he completed a million metres on the erg over the course of 2023, which was not the first year that he had achieved this feat. He was delighted to win the much-deserved Nottingham RC Masters Athlete of the Year award in 2023, which was presented at the club dinner.

He will be much missed by many throughout the rowing community.