Rowingvoice Is Concerned with Performance, Politics, and Personalities, with the Issues, History and Culture Which Surround Rowing
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Published by the Independent Rowing Nation www.rowingservice.com/voice 12 March 2007 OWING 1:1 oice Manifesto R V Welcome to Rowing Voice, an occasional magazine on rowing. The RowingVoice is concerned with performance, politics, and personalities, with the issues, history and culture which surround rowing. RowingVoice aims to give readers quality, insight, interpre- tation and wit from the best writers, photogra- phers and thinkers in the rowing community. The editors believe ‘For a sport blessed that the time is ripe for with such intelligent something new. Are we athletes, why are they right? Let us hear your dumbing them down?’ response, so please tell Richard Phelps, us your opinions, con- Cambridge div rep cerns and desires. Email voice@rowingservice. com RowingVoice is pub- lished by Rowing Ink. Editors Rachel Quarrell and Christopher Dodd James, West, Schulte and Engelmann - four Cambridge international medallists. © RowingVoice™ Twenty of the twenty-two men who to deal with. More than a year ago she and UK have won Olympic gold medals for Sport made a significant change to the way they All rights reserved. dealt with funding, and the national federations Material may not be re- Britain since 1984 have at least one produced in any media degree — and one of the remaining and athletes. This change was to bring in the ‘No without written permis- two has an honorary D. Litt. As well Compromise’ principle, a modus operandi which sion of RowingVoice as a knighthood. is not defined anywhere in writing, but which is constantly alluded to in official paperwork. Contact: voice@ Analysis Christopher Dodd and ‘The ‘No Compromise’ strategy is about provid- rowingservice.com Rachel Quarrell. Photograph Peter ing the right resources to the right athlete’, said Spurrier Nicholl last November. ‘It’s ‘no compromise’ tel 07710-538114 fax 0870-164-1650 in terms of support from us and in terms of their alf of the national squad are now required commitment. It’s not about whether the athlete to row full-time with GB Rowing for Published irregularly. can be a student or not. It’s about what training two years of a four-year Olympiad. Such H they are undertaking to achieve the results, on the demands threaten to impinge more on careers, aca- programme: what training programme they are CONTENTS demic and otherwise, and UK Sport’s requirements following. We can’t prove they are absolutely Degrees on the for funding support and GB Rowing’s interpreta- negating their chances of Olympic success if they gold line 1-5 tion of them is of concern to rowing clubs through- don’t follow the national squad training pro- Hammer Smith 2-5 out the land, particularly those which are centres of gramme, but they are compromising it.’ News 6, 9-11 excellence themselves. Enclosure in trong language, and one which some very Voice asked UK Sport and GB Rowing to explain the Sky 7-8 successful athletes across the world might their views of how top-class funding works, and Overseas News 11 disagree with. The best results are not al- what they expect from the athletes atttempting to S Results Service 12-15 ways obtained by those within a rigorous national jigsaw together academic and Olympic goals. Holiday Planner 16 framework. But with the money being thrown at Rant 16 Liz Nicholl is director of performance for UK sport as we approach the 2012 Olympic Games, Last Words 16 Sport, making her one of the most important the resources of Britain’s national federations are people that Olympic sports such as rowing have improving dramatically. And history – » The magazine that puts the fibre into carbon........ News p 6 » 12 March 2007 OWING page 2 on two Cambridge students and Rinternational medalV- oice « particularly in the former communist states, in Hammer Smith’s Australia and most recently in China – suggests lists: Tom James, and Kieran West. Both had their that centralisation of a strong sport programme GB Rowing funding (see page 6) cut in September, Voices does bring gold medals. It’s also worth remem- when they chose to return to CUBC rather than join Off bering that rowing is not the only sport affected. the GB squad’s trip to Beijing. Tanner explains his UK Sport’s tactics are partly designed to help view of the situation. ‘In the starkest terms, it’s Oxford blues bring improvement in sports currently much less about whether if you choose to be part of a differ- 20 years on well organised than ours. Some don’t even have ent programme for the winter, you should receive a national training programme for the athletes to the money to train full-time. My answer is no, you Yes, folks, it’s 20 follow, even if they want to. should just receive a portion of it. It’s reasonable for years since Oxford such athletes to get their sporting costs but not their were revolting. So why did this hit the national papers dur- living costs. For instance a “Band B” athlete would The crew that beat Cambridge in 1987 ing the autumn? That, in part, comes down to get £8,200, not £17,000.’ what ‘no compromise’ means to those who have was Pelham, Gish, Gleeson, Ward, Hull, already competed for Great Britain. Liz Nicholl his seems to give some student rowers, Macdonald, Cadoux- again: ‘Rowing’s specific agreement [made with especially those at universities a long way Hudson, Stewart, cox athletes] reflects their reduced commitment to Tgeographically from the national training Lobbenberg. But it the World Class training if they are not with the base at Caversham, something of a Hobson’s choice. might have contained national team, which in turn reflects a risk they At the same time that James and West returned to internationals Clark, Huntington, Lyons, are taking. There is no situation where UK Sport Cambridge, two potential Oxford University squad Penny and cox Fish, is saying you cannot be a student, though. We’d members, former Blue Tom Parker and new applicant with Cadoux, Hull and advise a system where athletes are continuing to Hugo Lee, chose to put their GB ambitions first. Lee Ward. What do they develop their education alongside their training. gave up the place he had already been offered at Ox- say now? In each sport the performance director of that ford, and Parker is still studying, but fitting it around ‘It was a very strange sport has responsibility for determining what’s his training with the national group. Should current atmosphere. Everyone needed.’ students give up their degrees? wanted to succeed, but the idea of ‘all Time to talk to David Tanner, GB Rowing’s own Not at all, says Tanner. ‘In our selection system, ath- one team’ didn’t high performance director, and the person who letes continue to have the right to do their own thing. apply. This crew was deals with the athletes and coaches to negotiate We don’t make them go full-time, that’s not what dysfunctional; there was no leadership, funding, training programmes and schedules for we’re saying. It’s a slightly wider issue. If you’re at and this played to the international team, as well as justifying to UK university, you may need to finish your degree and Dan’s mystique as a Sport how we spend their (now very generous) we have had athletes in that situation. In term time, coach. He changed the grants. ‘As far as being in the squad is concerned, there is no issue, they need to be at university, though order and we started we will continue to have guys in clubs who are on we try to get people to participate [in the national to move.’ — Andy Lobbenberg, 2007 the way up. If someone is trying to be at univer- squad training] as much as we can. An example is the sity and get into the team, that’s fine. The only pre-Olympic camp, from which the athletes returned ‘OUBC came issue is, when you’ve made the team, what do you on 1st October 2006. There was no reason at all why out strong. The the Oxford and Cambridge athletes could not go to constitution was do next. And that has always been an issue. In rewritten, and the the Athens Olympic year, we were making big it, as their terms hadn’t started. Camps are the key to mutiny caused a lot decisions about selection in February, and it could this: selection tests are not negotiable.’ of reflection on how have been earlier: we need people to be there. coaching and selection Nicholl also recognises the problem, though she That’s always been the case.’ happened. It was a refuses any suggestion that UK Sport can do much healthy thing. But the While the problem affects several rowers in to solve it. ‘We are now working with the university fallout was lasting principle, in practice it has had the biggest effect sector to develop flexible programmes. TASS (the » damage to many of the participants from a very unpleasant experience. We grew up very rapidly. There Do you know what? was still negative is the maximum is the maximum flavour a few years afterwards, and this £23930 Band A personal £56220 income threshold was made worse award for athletes (APA) (Olympic or (including APA). by the book [True Blue] and the film.’ world medallists). — Richard Hull, 2007 is the maximum is the maximum £32000 earnings from And it gets better. Band B APA (8th sponsors, earnings and prize money More revolting Blues £17948 revelations page 16» championship place or under).