eBusiness Weekly
Chipo Sabeta
Rowing twins Rory and Patrick Plunket took Zimbabwe rowing to new heights by qualifying for the A Final in the Boys Double Scull event in the last day of racing on Sunday August 11, 2019 at Junior World Rowing Championships, held in Tokyo, Japan.
Coached by Ernie Steenkamp, the twins were competing with 550 of the best junior rowers from 50 countries around the world on the new rowing course, which has been specially built in Tokyo for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics next year.
The two distinguished themselves well in the last stages.
This is the first time that Zimbabwean rowers have ever reached an A Final at a World Rowing Championship event.
To get to the A Final the Plunket brothers had to wade off strong competition in a number of preliminary rowing heats from countries such as China, Russia, US, the Netherlands, Japan, Brazil, Denmark, Greece and Thailand in the rowing event, which with entries from 24 countries, had the largest number of entries at this year’s Junior World Rowing Championships.
In the A Final the Plunket brothers competed against Australia, Spain, Italy, Germany and France, all big names in the international rowing world with Australia and Germany scooping gold medal.
Italy took silver and bronze medals. France and Spain took the fourth and fifth spots and Zimbabwe finished sixth.
Rowing Association of Zimbabwe (RAZ) president, Andrew Lorimer was delighted with these results.
“With 155 countries in the world being affiliated to FISA, the international world rowing body, it is a great achievement for Zimbabwe to be ranked 6th in the world after these Junior World Championships in the Boys Double Scull event and 13th in the world in the Girls Single Scull event,” he said.
“These are very commendable results and are testimony to the hard work and training put in by our junior athletes and by their coaches.
“RAZ is very appreciative of the efforts of these athletes and their coaches and also of their parents who have given so much to enable these athletes to compete on the world stage. RAZ is also appreciative of sponsorship provide by Ecosure to assist our rowers and coaches to get to Japan.
“Regular participation by our athletes at international events and competition with the best rowers in the world is part of the Rowing Association of Zimbabwe’s efforts to fit in with the long term goal of the Zimbabwe Olympic Committee to work towards achieving podium performances by Zimbabwe at the 2024 and 2028 Summer Olympics,” Lorimer added.
Another Zimbabwean star, Lorryn Bass who is coached by Kristine Johnson, competed in the Girls Single Scull event which had entries from 21 countries.
She won the Final, beating the Czech Republic, Japan, Latvia and Tunisia.
