September 2022 Bulletin

A HISTORIC TWO MONTHS

If you have been away for the past six weeks you may have missed what has been an historic run in the history of Alberta Rowing.  Since July 15, 2022 Alberta athletes have accomplished the following:

  • A record 5 Alberta athletes were nominated to represent Canada at the 2022 World Rowing Championships in Racice Czech Republic from September 18-25.  Jessica Sevick and Kasia Gruchalla Wesierski will compete in the Women’s 8+.  Karen Lefsrud will represent Canada in the Women’s 4-.  Karissa Riley will compete in the Lightweight Women’s 1x while Curtis Ames will compete in the Men’s 8+.   Good luck to all of you.
  • A record three Alberta Athletes represented Canada at the U23 World Rowing Championships in Varese Italy.  Andrew Hubbard finished in 13th  place in the Men’s Double, while Eliza Dawson and Shaye de Paiva representing Canada in the Women’s 8+ finished in 9th place. 
  • Jessie Loutit, Courtney Kruschel, Olivia McMurray and Kendra Hartley representing the Calgary Rowing Club, won the Women’s 4- event at the Royal Canadian Henley regatta for the fifth time in the past 6 events. 
  • Anna Currie returned home with Henley Gold in the Lightweight Women’s Single event
  • Team Alberta won five medals at the 2022 Canada Summer Games

Canada Summer Games Recap

The Alberta Rowing Association (ARA) had a strong performance at the 2022 Canada Summer Games in Niagara, Ontario.  ARA athletes returned home from the games winning 5 medals including its first gold medal at a CSG event since 2013. A breakdown of Team Alberta’s performance is as follows

Men’s Team

Men’s 1x – Andrew Hubbard – finished 4th overall

Men’s 2x –Bob Bryden / Michael Claassen – finished 4th overall

Men’s Lightweight 2x – Griffen Salmon / Ben Ravenscroft – finished 5th overall

Men’s Pair – Gold Medal

Crew – Axel Ewashko / Andrew Hubbard

Men’s Four – Silver Medal

Crew – Sam Ree / Axel Ewashko / Eric Pettapiece / Patrick Milner

Men’s 4x –Bronze Medal –

Crew – Andrew Hubbard / Griffen Salmon / Ben Ravenscroft / Michael Claassen

Men’s 8+ – Bronze Medal

Crew – Sam Ree/ Bob Bryden / Henry King / Patrick Milner / Macdonagh Dressler / Axel Ewashko / Eric Pettapiece / Alexis Vela-Tafich / Paige Sze

Women’s Team

Women’s 1x –Cecile Ferraro– 9th Place

Women’s 2x  – Cecile Ferraro / Kiana Worobey – 5th Place

Women’s 4x   – Ainsley Salmon / Gaby Yarema / Kaliya Javra / Kiana Worobey  – 4th Place

Lightweight Women’s 2x – Kiara Brennan / Meghan Rogers. – 5th Place

Women’s 2-  Beth Miller / Gaby Worobec – 4th Place

Women’s 8+ – Beth Miller / Ainsley Salmon / Gaby Yarema / Gaby Worobec / Kaliya Javra/ Vivian Liu / Nicole Gammie / Megan Elekes / Liz Ford – 5th Place

Women’s 4- Bronze Medal

Crew:  Beth Miller / Gaby Worobec / Gaby Yarema / Kaliya Javra

Coaching Staff – Alex Marchuk / Jenny McGuinness / Tim Fleming / Michael Simonson

Congratulations to all of you for representing Alberta at this event. 

ARA Funding

The ARA “Provincial Carding Program” was introduced in 2018 to provide direct funding assistance to support qualified Alberta athletes.  Of the athletes the ARA provided has provided funding assistance to, three have gone on to represent Canada at the Olympic/Paralympic games, while four additional athletes have represented Canada at a World Cup / World Championships.  Furthermore, the three Alberta athletes selected to represent Canada at the U23 World Championships this summer (Eliza Dawson, Shaye dePaiva and Andrew Hubbard) were all carding recipients this past year.   Needless to say, the ARA Funding program has been a success over the past five years providing Alberta athletes with the financial resources they require to year to reach their athletic goals.   

The ARA has provided a “draft copy” of the 2022 Athlete Assistance Program in conjunction with this notice. 

NRC REGATTA

It is hard to believe that the National Rowing Championships is only two months away. This year’s NRC Regatta will take place from November 10-13 in Quamichan, British Columbia.  Those interested in attending this event should pay particular attention to the selection document which is being distributed in conjunction with this notice.

Royalty and Rowing

On this day when we mourn the passing of the Queen, the monarch whose impact is seemingly everywhere even left her mark on the sport of rowing here in Western Canada.  In 1987, Queen Elizabeth II was on hand to celebrate the official opening of the Victoria Park Boathouse in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. 

Upcoming Events

Dino Sprints Regatta- September 24, 2022 – Calgary, Alberta