The Secret to Success

25 Olympians, 23 of whom were rowers. 11 straight Olympic Games - 1976-2016. 9 Olympic medalists: Bronze: Ned Pratt & Bruce Ford; Silver: Tom Herschmiller, Malcolm Howard, David Calder & Scott Frandsen; Gold Blair Horn, Darren Barber & Malcolm Howard. This is just a fraction of the success produced by the world renowned Brentwood College Rowing Club. This phenomenal program has produced over 120 national championships in the last 50 years, as well as sending crews to esteemed regattas, such as the Head of the Charles in Boston, USA and Opening Day in Seattle.  For the 48th year in a row, the Brentwood College School Rowing Club will host a prestigious event: The Brentwood International Rowing Regatta. Teams from all corners of the globe, including Mexico, the United States, Australia, Europe, and Asia have travelled to compete in this event. Each year, thousands of spectators, coaches, and rowers are in attendance, while over 1,700 student athletes showcase their ability in hopes of reaching the podium! This year, Brentwood rowers are training hard to ready themselves for this elite event on home waters. Ms Debbie Sage, an important member of the rowing club’s coaching staff, and Regatta Coordinator, explained how Brentwood’s rowers are working to prepare for the regatta that will measure our crews against some of the same competition they will face at the National Championships in St. Catharines, Ontario, later on this season” “To ensure our athletes are in peak physical shape, a new pre-training session routine has been implemented before the crews hit the water. Everyone completes a three kilometer run, followed by eight dynamic exercises in order to warm up their entire body before getting in their boats. Each crew has a specific, personalized on-water warm-up before each race, which has the purpose of preparing each athlete to row well and perform at the best of their ability. In preparation for the regatta we will be working in our targeted boat combinations and our morning practices will be concentrating on speed work where we will race against other crews in the program and push each to meet the gold medal standards.” When Brentwood’s athletes are training hard to work towards maximum performance potential, coaches like to focus just as much on recovery as they do on training. An important factor to help the athletes stay healthy is a well balanced diet. This year, our rowing program has had the opportunity to have athletic nutrition specialists meet with the coaches and athletes to help them understand ways to properly fuel their bodies to keep up with the high performance demand. “We are always talking proper food intake and sleep. Sleep is very important to our recovery process” commented Ms Sage. The Brentwood Regatta is very important to the members of the rowing club, as it is a chance to showcase their incredible skills in front of friends and family. Brentwood’s student athletes are looking forward to competing at the 48th Annual Brentwood International Rowing Regatta this from Friday, April 27th to Sunday April 29th. It is an unforgettable event, filled with elite racing, live entertainment, the Brentwood Student Art Show, and a variety of incredible food booths run by the Brentwood Entrepreneurship classes! Spectators, coaches, and athletes are encouraged to join us on this spectacular weekend. More information, as well as the event live stream, can be found on the Brentwood Regatta website! Zjaya D, Allard ‘19; Photo by Mike Minckler