Colombo Rowing Club will develop rowing and create interest among members

By Leslie FERNANDO

ROWING: Colombo Rowing Club will make every effort to create interest and develop rowing in a big way among the club members.

It is also planned to form a 'pool' of young oarsmen and oarswomen in preparation for regattas to be conducted by the club and Amateur Rowing Association of Sri Lanka (ARASL) said the newly elected President of the Colombo Rowing Club Sanjay Senarath.

Sanjay Senarath, a former Thomian rowing captain in 1983, who has rowed for his school and Colombo Rowing Club at several local and foreign regattas said that Colombo Rowing Club, was founded on the 15th of July 1864 by Sir Edward Creasy, the former Chief Justice of Ceylon as Sri Lanka was then known. From available records, it makes the Colombo Rowing Club the oldest club in Sri Lanka, As Sir Edward was from Oxford, the Colombo rowing Club adopted the club colours Oxford blue and white.

Senarath said that the Colombo Rowing Club from its initial stages had developed into one of the most prestigious and active private member clubs in Sri Lanka. A significant feature has been that while the club's main sporting focus remains in rowing, social interaction and fellowship is also an important aspect. The club can proudly claim to be the cradle of rowing in Sri Lanka and all the current affiliated clubs of the Amateur Rowing Association of Sri Lanka were born of the facilities and infrastructure that is available at the Colombo Rowing Club.

Senarath, well experienced sports administrator, said that there are 12 institutions who use the facilities at the Colombo Rowing Club and we will extend all the support for the development of rowing.

The Colombo rowing Club holds more than seven regattas annually and the most important and prestigious one is the Madras-Colombo Regatta. As you may be aware, this is a boat race that dates back to 1898 and is considered second in vintage value only to the prestigious Oxford-Cambridge University boat race, the world's oldest, continuing inter-institutional event. The 2010 regattas to be conducted by the Colombo Rowing Club are - Inaugural Regatta (opening event for 2010). South-West Monsoon Regatta, Ranfer Sprints, Madras-Colombo Regatta, Inter-Monsoon Regatta, North East Monsoon Regatta, Closing Regatta and Amateur Rowing Association of East Regatta.

For both Madras-Colombo Regatta and ARAE Regatta, there will be foreign rowers raking part.

Then the girls too will comes into the picture and their will be Ladies College and Museaus College annual regatta and the prestigious Royal-Thomian regatta for boys will also be worked off.