A GROUP of King’s Ely rowers spent the first week of their Easter break improving their skills on the waters in Western Portugal.
The climate and weather conditions were far from exotic however, as the students faced strong winds and heavy rain every day during their trip, which saw 26 students from Years 9-13 at King’s Ely Senior spend five days in Figueira da Foz, located in Portugal’s Coimbra District. Despite the challenging conditions, the rowers made great progress developing in both singles and double sculls.
Head of Rowing at King’s Ely, Craig Ward, said: “The weather proved to be a constant enemy to the group as strong winds and driving rain made on-water rowing a real challenge. However despite this, they made great progress over the week, developing in singles and double sculls. The students were a credit to both themselves and the school, and even took well to the Portuguese language! This Easter Rowing Camp was a great opportunity for the students to build on their skill set for the run in to regatta season, with some big events now less than six weeks away.”
With arguably the best stretch of river for rowing in the country, it is not surprising that King’s Ely has been a strong force in UK rowing for many years. As one of the major sports available to students from Year 8, rowing is enormously popular at King’s Ely. The school’s Boat Club is located on the river just a short walk from school, providing an uninterrupted stretch of water that runs for over 15 miles in each direction, including a 5 kilometre straight, making it the perfect place to train.
Rowing Coach Jerry Dale took some great photographs during the trip, which can be viewed here: https://www.jeremydale.co.uk/figdafoz19