Concluding their season, U of T placed sixth overall for both men’s and women’s at the Ontario University Rowing Championships last weekend at St. Catherines, Ontario. Western took both first places at the regatta.
In what was supposed to be a developmental year for Blues rowing due to an influx of untried youth, head coach Gary Stinson said the focus was on building a strong foundation for the future. The start of the season drew a large number of novice rowers to the team, which will be a good base for coming years, he said.
“This was a major rebuilding year and our sixth-place finish [at the OUA Championships] behind such power houses as Queen’s and Western was not unexpected,” he said. “A strong showing by our novices as well as a dominating performance by Michaela Spitzer in winning the Women Heavyweight and Lightweight single event shows a good mix for the future.”
Spitzer eclipsed the competition, winning gold medals in both the Women’s Lightweight single and the Women’s Heavyweight single competitions. The U of T Men’s Heavyweight four of Mike Braithwaite, John Hoppe, Michael Ross, Alex Somjen, and cox Jess Leung was U of T’s top-placing Men’s boat, qualifying for the OUA final.
Stinson also notes that a positive team dynamic was an asset to this year’s rowing team.
“I was very impressed with the way the team worked together as a well-integrated club both at competition and during training,” he said.
Men’s captain Ross agreed, with a similar reflection on the season.
“This season was more of a team-building season than anything else,” Ross said. “We were fortunate enough to get a very good group of new individuals who showed great interest and dedication to the new sport, as well as a few experienced rowers coming back for another season. I was really pleased with everyone on the team in how they were bonding and getting along with each other, which created an incredible atmosphere within the crews.”
The Blues will now enter their winter training phase, where they will practice indoors in order to prepare for next season. With such a promising future, Ross is encouraged about the coming campign.
“I’m excited when looking to next year since many of the new rowers seem to have developed a real interest for the sport, and many of the coaches are optimistic about the program after seeing the potential that exists,” he said.
Varsity Women’s team member Agnes Bolinska agrees that the future is bright, and that working hard in the winter months to come is important to next year’s success.
“I think our team has the potential to do well next year,” Bolinska said. “We will need to train hard this winter to build up our fitness.” The U of T rowing team has their work cut out for them, but it seems like they are up for the challenge.
