Focus on Lucerne ? The Speed of the Springbok

By Melissa Bray

Cech and Di Clemente, back at Lucerne in the pair
© Sybrand Treffers

They come from a continent where rowing is new to the sporting scene. They live a country with very few rowers. They train in a city where rugby and soccer rule – yet they are currently ranked third in the world and are taking on the finest.

Last week South African pair, Ramon Di Clemente and Don Chech, led the indomitable Olympic/World Champions, Matthew Pinsent and James Cracknell, for 600 metres in the final at Henley and finished only ½ a length down.

Asked about the result, South African head coach, Christian Felkel, said, ?Well, we lost. At Henley you come second, you lose.? This is the determination behind the drive of the boys from the south. Felkel does admit it was a great race and it is the first time the pair have ever led Pinsent and Cracknell. They also got a lot of support from the largely British crowd at Henley ? encouraged by backing the underdogs.

Cech and Di Clemente have been pair partners since 1998 and their debut to international racing was in Lucerne that year. Their result was respectable; coming second in the B-final. By the time they reached the 2000 Olympics they had improved to the 6^th spot in the A-final.

The combination was put together when coaches spotted their individual potential. At the time Di Clemente was rowing on his university crew in Johannesburg. Cech, who lived five hours away in Pietermaritzburg, would commute to Johannesburg on the weekends to train. In 2000 he moved to Johannesburg.

Felkel admits that coaching such a small pool of athletes is sometimes a bit lonely. ?We do handicapped racing at training camps, with the women’s pair going first and the men’s pair playing catch up.? Felkel says his philosophy is not to have Cech and Di Clemente racing against each other, instead he uses training to work on making the boat move more efficiently.

The men’s pair will be joined in Lucerne by the women’s pair of Rika Geyser and Colleen Orsmond and a youthful lightweight men’s four.

So what’s Felkel’s prediction for Lucerne? ?I have no idea. All the good crews are here.? He cites top crews from Australia, Yugoslavia, Croatia and, perennials, Germany and Great Britain. ?I’m prepared for one to six.?