Students set to row, row, row their boat

Published on Friday 6 November 2009 10:07

A FORMER George Watson's College pupil is set to help row over 300 miles across the North Sea – on a rowing machine.

Murray Wilkojc, from Edinburgh, is part of a 16-strong team of rowers from Newcastle University Boat Club who will race a DFDS Seaways cruise ferry from the international passenger terminal at North Shields to Amsterdam.

The DFDS Seaways North Sea Challenge, which starts today, sees the team linking two rowing machines together on the deck of the MS Princess of Norway, and attempting to row 308 miles in less than the ferry's average crossing time of 15 and a half hours.

Boat Club spokesman, Andrew Curry, said: "This will be a monumental challenge; a test of the physical and mental endurance of each athlete's ability to push themselves to the limit.

"The 16 athletes have been selected on the back of fitness, sprint and endurance trials, because every member of the team must be able to compete at the top of their game for 15 hours straight."

The ferry will leave North Shields at 5pm and the rowers will row continuously throughout the night. They will row in a relay two at a time, and four support staff members will travel with the team.

They hope to raise 10,000 towards the 30,000 average annual running costs of the Boat Club.