World Rowing Tour discovers Cinque Terre

Eighty-six rowers from a record 18 nations and six continents took to the waters in the first rowing tour to be conduction entirely on the sea. Of these rowers, 53 took part in the World Rowing Tour for the first time this year.

The rowers were given the chance to enjoy the breathtaking sceneries of the Cinque Terre National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as well as the city of Genoa.

Rowing excursions took place on six of the eight days of the tour, with stretches varying between 15km and 28km in length. Starting east of Cinque Terre, tour rowers headed westwards to finish the tour in Genoa. Time was allocated not only to rowing but also to tourism, allowing participants to discover the natural and cultural heritage of the region.

[PHOTO src=”130042″ size=”mediumLandscape” align=”right”]

The average age of the participants was 61, with ages ranging from 31 to 77 and six of the rowers being over the age of 70. France and Australia had the most applicants (17 each) with ten each being selected from both countries. 

The primary objective of tour rowing is to encourage an active lifestyle. Fraternity is also an important element of the spirit of the tour, so crew rotations allowed participants to row with different people every day, preferably with rowers from different countries than their own.

Participants rowed in coxed quadruple scull coastal rowing boats. It was the first World Rowing Tour conducted on the sea since 1998 and the first conducted entirely on the sea.

[PHOTO src=”130040″ size=”mediumLandscape” align=”right”]

Changing weather conditions forced flexibility in the programme, with a non-forecasted supercell thunderstorm developing on one of the days of the tour. The predefined safety measures proved adequate and the whole fleet made it safely back to shore.

“The World Rowing Tour enjoyed the generous hospitality of local clubs and municipalities on each day of the tour,” says Warwick Marler of FISA’s Rowing for All Commission. “The efforts and achievements of the Organising Committee – Pietro Dagnino and his team from Società Canottieri Genovesi ELPIS were outstanding.”

The video.