Thunderstorm threat fails to halt Athlone Regatta success story

On Saturday last, June 17, Athlone Boat Club held their annual regatta at Coosan Point welcoming crews from across Ireland’s four provinces with some arriving early on Friday.

Regatta secretary John O’Meara oversaw the event on the day. The regatta was attended by over 500 crews with 138 races planned but due to a late weather warning at approximately 4.40pm, the regatta had to be abandoned. This was down to the health and safety of all crews as thunderstorms were reported in the area.

But this did not take away from the great excitement that unfolded all day, as a massive 118 races took place out of 138. This included junior rowers as young as 13 and masters all enjoying the inner lake at Coosan Point as the 1000-metre flying start races took place.

Weeks of organising and planning is invested into ensuring that the day is a success for the club - from laying the course, putting in place the boat slipways and setting up Coosan Point as a top class venue for rowing.

Lady Luck needs to shine when it comes to the weather and on the day, it was a mixed bag of rain, sun and wind. However, that did not dampen spirits on the day and crews took to the water as early as 7am, with first races starting at 8am under the starter’s orders of club president Paul Donovan.

Paul ensured that crews were lined up, and he was supported by umpires who settled any nerves of junior rowers. At the finish line crews were watched crossing the line by race finisher Martin Hogan. Martin logged all wins and kept a close eye as some races came down to fine margins.

Club Captain Nick Friel stated: “Teamwork was demonstrated in bucketfuls from parking stewards, food sales, slipway management, health and safety, race umpires, club parents, club members, volunteers - the list is never ending. We could not do this event without the 100% commitment from our community that is Athlone Boat Club and our friends.”

The event was sponsored by Viking Tours Ireland and Rowing Boat Repairs. The club sincerely thanks all who sponsored the regatta. Those that support it keep this regatta going yearly; without this kind of support, it would be very difficult to achieve such a successful event.

Volunteers are the backbone of this event yearly and the club had a large number of safety boats and umpires to ensure races took off on time and crews were guided down the course to the finish line. Support was provided on the day by Athlone Sub Aqua Club who always play a vital role in ensuring safety and support was provided to all crews on the water. They were called into action on a few occasions to support rowers and, with support from the Order of Malta on the shoreline, the event was well monitored.

“Athlone Sub Aqua Club play a vital role in the safe running of this event yearly and Athlone Boat Club is very grateful for their commitment and involvement to our regatta,” stated club president Paul Donovan.

The Stephen Doran Cup was won by Enniskillen Rowing Club who racked up an incredible 48 wins and 2nd or 3rd positions in a selection of different categories on the day. The Stephen Doran Cup means so much to Athlone Boat Club. Stephen was a member of the famous Maiden 8 Athlone crew that won 11 trophies in 1970. Stephen sadly drowned on August 19th of that year, and the Stephen Doran Cup is presented each year in his memory.

Athlone Boat Club also had a number of fantastic wins from junior boys and girls to their masters men’s 8 on the day with all taking gold for the town.

Club President Paul Donovan stated that the club was in a strong position and hopes to continue to succeed into the future.

“The club is built up of remarkable people who invest so much time and energy into our rowers and the club’s development. We look forward now with some great inspiration from this home regatta to this year’s national championships in Cork where our crews will be attending in July,” he said.

In conclusion, Paul thanked the Order of Malta, the RNLI, Westmeath County Council, Local Fishing Groups, IWAI Dunrovin, Coosan Point residents, the Lough Ree Inn and the local Garda for all their support before the event and on the day. The club also like thanked all those that share Coosan Point and who offer support in holding this event.