Sri Lanka National Rowing Championships 2019 commences

Sri Lanka National Rowing Championships 2019 kicked off at the Diyawanna Rowing Centre (DRC) from 13 February. 

This year’s National Championships is unique as the event is conducted in two segments, Junior/Intermediate and Open, whereas in all previous years the National Championships was combined under age categories and open.

By the segregation of the championships to two main segments, the upcoming junior rowers are given a good opportunity to improve their standards, and even qualify for the National Rowing squad. The open event, which is the 34th National Rowing Championships, will be conducted at the same venue from 28 February to 2 March over the magnificent 2000 metre (2km) rowing course. 

This year, the enthusiasm and competitiveness have increased by leaps and bounds. 342 athletes are participating in the junior and intermediate championships. 250 of these athletes are males and females from eleven schools.

In the previous years, the Rowing Nationals consisted only of Under 18, Over 18 and Open categories. The new championship format will induce and promote rowing from a tender age and groom the youngsters to show their talent at an event of their own. It will also act as a progression event with the racing distances pegged at 500 meters for Under 14, 1000 meters for Under 16 and 2000 meter full course for under 18 categories. The Under 18 category will be the platform for the national coaches to choose athletes to represent Sri Lanka at all international Junior competitions. 

The Intermediate category is segregated from the previous format and has allowed a new category in the first stage of the championships for athletes over 18 years. Newcomers to the sport have also received a competitive chance to progress to the open elite championships in the latter part of the month. This category is where the Universities, Clubs, and Tri-Forces will have opportunities to make the new entrants eligible to participate in the Senior Open Championship. Not forgetting the importance of this category, the Intermediate will carry its own championship status.

The Senior Championship will give the elite oarsman and oarswomen a chance to showcase their skills. The Senior Championship is an open category where any athlete who feels they can perform on the full 2 kilometre course can participate. In raising the standards of the Senior or Elite category, minimum pre-competition timing will be an eligibility criteria. The winners will be deemed as the best senior athletes of the nation and will be invited to the National Squad for selection to represent Sri Lanka at international events.

The Junior and Intermediate championships will carry medals and certificates. The Junior championship, being the biggest competition in the junior calendar, will be awarded trophies according to the medal tally as per the Olympic format. The senior championship will also have medals and certificates, but as it is the elite regatta in the Sri Lankan rowing calendar, each event will be awarded trophies (10 trophies in total). The trophy count has been increased since the last National Rowing Championship, serving as a boost for all rowers to perform at their best.

The racing formalities for the Junior, Intermediate and Senior championships will be according to FISA (The international governing body for rowing) guidelines. There will be 112 races in all, rowed four crews abreast.