Zimbabwe schools that participated at the 2018 SA Schools and Junior Rowing Championships at Roodeplaat Dam near Pretoria a fortnight ago impressed yet again with Peterhouse topping the overall co-ed schools standings with 109 points.
BY MUNYARADZI MADZOKERE
Peterhouse, Arundel, Chisipite and St George’s represented the country at the biggest annual schools rowing event on the continent.
The SA Schools Championships set the tone for the challenging season ahead for junior rowing, which will culminate with participation at the 2018 Youth Olympics to be staged in Buenos Aires, Argentina, later this year.
“Zimbabwe again put out great performances at the Championships. We are getting stronger and stronger, each year, our performances are better,” national and Chisipite rowing coach Kristine Johnson told The Sports Hub.
“It is always such an amazing regatta to be at and pushes the kids to perform better. It also put our athletes on a good base for the upcoming International Regatta Piediluco, SA Senior Champs and Munich in April and May respectively. The young rowers have a big season coming up and their preparations are on track for even greater performances,” she added.
The SA Championships were also used to provisionally select a team to take part at the youth Olympics.
Peterhouse Boat Club (PHBC)’s Genevieve Shoesmith won silver in the girls’ Under-14 single scull race PHBC.
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Holly Bicknell (PHBC), who won gold in the girls’ Under-15 single scull over 1 000 metres race last year, scooped bronze competing in the Under-16 class of the same event.
Bicknell then teamed up with Deborah Davy (cox), Victoria Wood, Jade O’Donovan and Emma Kuipers to win another bronze in the Under-16 quad scull contest.
There was however disappointment for top junior rower Lorryn Bass from Chisipite Boat Club, a gold medal winner from last year, who finished eighth in the Under-19 finals.
Victoria Wood and Bicknell (PHBC) put up a spirited performance to finish fourth in the girls’ Under-16 double scull event, while the quad Under-15 team of Deborah Davy (cox), Stacey Dunstan, Kayla Kalweit, Genevieve Shoesmith and Dona Erasmus also finished fourth.
Top performers in the junior men finals were another Peterhouse pair of Reagan Evans [Under-14 singles scull and junior national team rower] and Kenneth Raynor [Under-19 single scull], who finished fourth and fifth respectively.
Emmanuel Nyamupingidza and Evans (Peterhouse) settled for fourth in the Under-14 double scull as did the Under 19 quad team comprising Dilan Naran (cox), David Rogers, Brendan Eggersclusz, Douglas Cox and Raynor.
