BC Athletes, Coaches and Umpires Heading to International Regattas

The Rowing BC Performance Program showed up in a big way at the Rowing Canada Junior National Team Trials held June 3rd to 5th following the CSSRA Regatta in St. Catharines.  Rowing Canada has altered its strategy for delivering the U19 National Team program this year. Provinces and clubs have had the opportunity to select and prepare junior project crews to present themselves for selection at the Junior Trials. 

Rowing BC has worked hard this year throughout various camps, supporting the collaboration of several clubs and programs to create project crews that were successful in the junior national team trials.

The Women’s Pair, from Victoria City Rowing Club, of Lucy Hallett and Ciana Della Siega led the way with the fastest result in the second round of racing. Ater a trying first round in the W4-, they performed well when they jumped into the 2-. They showed the form that won them the CSSRA Championship event where they had represented Oak Bay High School. This VCRC crew also won both the U19 and Open W2- race at the Rowing BC Provincial Championships. They will represent Canada at the U19 World Championships in St. Catharines, ON in August.

The U19 Women’s Coxed Four, comprised of athletes from Victoria City Rowing Club,  Maple Bay Rowing Club and Brentwood College, were successful in earning a spot on the team as well. The crew of Kate Watson, Willow Tzonev, Rowan Thompson, Agata Minka and Annika Miarianno had one of the highest prognostic times relative to their standard. The crew is coached by Vic City’s Lead U19 Women’s coach Miki Chantler. They showed their form at the BC Provincial Championships with a solid win.

Following the trials, Rowing Canada modified some of the crews to include athletes from other provinces. One BC athlete, Novella Rusman from Brentwood College, fought her way into a seat in the Ontario based Women’s eight. Meanwhile the Men’s eight remains mostly Vancouver Island based, included athletes from Brentwood College, Victoria City Rowing Club and Claremont Rowing Academy. This was truly an example of collaboration and support from the club coaches and athletes working hard throughout the year to develop this project. Brian Carr led this project since it was selected in the Rowing BC Sprint Break Camp and brought these young athletes up to a strong standard. The line-up for the World Championships boat will also include some athletes from Ontario.

Heading to Mexico for the CanAmMex Regatta, will be several BC athletes. These include Tristan Chang and Max Powell from VCRC, Joshua Mills and William Jacques from Vancouver College, Cameron Arthur from False Creek, and Elijah Baughen from Brentwood College.

Rowing BC would also like to congratulate BC based athletes on their selection to the Senior and U23 National Team. Ciara Stevenson (Delta Deas) and Danielle Main (Vancouver Rowing Club) will represent Canada at the Senior Worlds. Emerson Crick (UBC), Giancarlo DiPompea (UVic), Sai Sai Faubert (UVic),Niko Schramm (UBC), Lyndsey Bryden (UBC), Ella Sousa (UVic), Isabella Howley (UBC), Owen Bartel (UBC), Jed Grieve (Brentwood College, Maijken Meindertsma (UBC), Oliver Page-Kuhr (VCRC), Robert Walsh (UBC) Adrian Breen (UBC), and Sscar Wostenholme (UBC) will wear the leaf at the World Rowing U23 Championships.

BC coaches supporting these crews are Katie Bahain-Steenman (RCA), Terry Paul (Rowing BC), Miki Chantler (VCRC) and Rene Gonin (GVYRS). Full team announcement can be found on the Rowing Canada webiste.

In addition to these talented athletes and coaches, several BC Umpires will be travelling to international events this summer too. Tim Henderson has been appointed by World Rowing to umpire at the “Mega Worlds” – the combined U19, U23 and Senior non-Olympc/Paralymic World Championships in August. He will be joined by National Technical Officals Ge-an Rijniersce, Mike Bagshawe. Then, in September, Ge-an Rijniersce will head to Genoa, Italy for World Rowing Coastal Championships and World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals.

We are also excited to see some of our BC athletes competing at the Paris 2024 Olympics this week. In the Women’s 8+, six of the athletes have rowed in BC.

Kristen Kit, Jessica Sevick, and Kristina Walker may have started their rowing careers in Ontario or Alberta, but they built on their skills at the University of British Columbia. Sydney Payne, from Toronto, rowed for Brentwood College School before attending the University of California.

We are particularly proud of our home-grown BC Olympic athletes Caileigh Filmer and Avalon Wasteneys.

Filmer began rowing at Victoria City Rowing Club and Mt. Douglas Secondary. She went on to row with the University of Victoria before making the National Team. Paris will be her third Olympics. In Rio 2016 she was part of the 5th place Women’s 8+. In Tokyo 2020 she won a bronze medal in the Women’s pair with fellow British Columbian, Hillary Janssens.

Wasteneys is from Campbell River and rowed for the University of Victoria. She quickly moved up the ranks and onto the National Team. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, she stroked the Women’s eight to a gold medal. You can see the full RCA Team announcement here.

There are two more BC Olympians who you won’t see – but you will hear. Commentating for CBC Olympic rowing coverage in English will be Andrea Proske (Victoria resident and Tokyo 2020 gold medalist in the W8+) and in French, Julien Bahain (2016 Olympian in Canada’s Men’s 4x, National Beach Sprint winner and Piers Island resident).

Congratulations to all and best of luck from the Board and Staff of Rowing BC.