Olympic Medallist Helps Kids Row Out of Troubled Waters

Three time Olympic medallist Silken Laumann is putting her years of experience as a top level athlete into a new rowing challenge. The 37-year-old Canadian is actively helping children and youths from difficult backgrounds get back on track through a program called Dynamic Opportunities for Youth.

The program was initiated five years ago following the tragic murder of a teenager by a youth group near the Gorge Waterway in Victoria. The event caused major concern in the community which resulted in the creation of various programs aimed at preventing youth violence in Canada. Dynamic Opportunities for Youth derived from one of them.

90 children from across Canada took part in this year’s program which teaches “at risk” kids the basics of rowing in a five week coaching session. As well as rowing, emphasis is set on important life skills that can be derived from the sport. These are tackled in group talks about goal-setting, teamwork and self esteem and attended by professional coaches and counsellors.

The program is aimed at participants from underprivileged and troubled backgrounds who have the most to gain from the lessons of sport.

“Rowing is usually accessible to children from rowing families. Kids who need it so much don’t have access, so this has given the opportunity to those who can benefit even more from the team building and challenge of rowing” Laumann says of the program.

Laumann is rewarded by the encouraging responses from the children themselves. Terri, a participant from Saskatoon says: “We learned to work as a team. To work as a team you must trust and listen to everyone involved. To improve at anything, you must be determined and work hard”.

Dynamic Opportunities for Youth is produced by Foundation 2000 Plus and is Sponsored by Dynamic Mutual Funds, the current sponsor of Canadian National Rowing Team.

For more information on this initiative visit the official website on http://www.f2000p.org