This Sporting Life: Rowing elite is just food and drink for some at Henley Royal Regatta

Published on Sunday 6 July 2008 21:47

SOME spectators at Henley Royal Regatta were finding their attention divided. Dressed in requisite blazer, flannels and tie – or a hat and a dress that covers the knees in the case of women – their interest was caught between supporting teams they were affiliated to and catching up with old friends. Others had long since abandoned the pretence.

"I've not seen much rowing really," admitted Alex Hitchinson, a 17-year-old member of the Twickenham Rowing Club. "All of our crews are out so now it's all about the food and drink, to be honest." Xan Bryant, an 18-year-old who had travelled down from Buckinghamshire with friends on his own boat 'Hot N Tot', concurred. "Pimms is definitely getting more attention than the rowing," he said.

The vibrant social side to the annual royal rowing regatta on the Thames can at times threaten to overshadow some world-class action on the river. Yesterday's final of the Grand Challenge Cup, the most prestigious race of the five-day event, was decided by the narrowest of margins in favour of Canada's Victoria City & Kingston Rowing Clubs who beat the famous Leander Club in the men's eight race.

Earlier in the week, there was a rare all-Scottish race as Edinburgh University met their Glasgow counterparts in the quarter-finals of the Prince Albert Cup for students coxed fours. Edinburgh's exertions in defeating First & Third Trinity, Cambridge, the previous day had "killed our guys" in the words of coach Nick Rankin, and they lost easily. Glasgow then fell to eventual winners Newcastle University on Saturday.

Training for such elite racing is arguably the most strenuous of all sports. With every muscle group being called upon over a 2,000m race distance that is both a sprint and a test of endurance, gym work, cross training and diet need to be at the forefront of a rower's thinking throughout the year.

Then throw in the 5am starts in deep mid-winter. The freezing temperatures not only mean scraping ice from your car at an ungodly hour, they seriously impair your efforts once you get to the boathouse and out on the water. Cold muscles in your arms and legs tighten to the point of threatening to tear or snap under duress. The only way to prevent this is to increase the oxygen flow with deep breaths, but the air is ice cold and the rowing action itself compresses the athlete's lungs.

When the Olympics roll round next month, the chance to justify all the hours of toil will present itself to the chosen few, and even fewer will land precious metal as a reward. The majority of competitive rowers, however, can only dream of significant financial gain.

Recognition is never as free-flowing as the 4-per-half-pint Pimms at Henley, either. "It's the new Ascot, isn't it?" chortles one female student on the banks. "It's a great place to just relax and have a giggle," comments an account director for a London marketing agency. "We've had a great day out and the stories will be going round the office for months." And just maybe the competitors who brought them all down to the river might even feature in the tales.