JERSEY’S coastal rowers took to the northern Tynemouth coast, earning a massive medal haul over the weekend.
Rick Rouille, one of Jersey’s most decorated coastal rowers, has produced some fantastic local athletes who are dominating the waves on the mainland. The British Coastal Championships were hosted off the coast of Newcastle upon Tyne, and Jersey’s athletes won an immense 15 medals across the various categories.
With Jersey quickly becoming one of the most respected rowing clubs across the UK, the Island’s representatives certainly stamped their authority in Tynemouth.
Rouille has run a performance group in the sport for nine years within the Jersey Rowing Club, solely focusing on bringing young, promising athletes up to a national standard.
Jersey’s first medal of the weekend was won by the young female pairing, 19-year-old Ryanna Clifford, and 20-year-old Tilly Woodhall. The pair claimed gold in the Senior Women’s 2x category with a time of 14 minutes and 41 seconds.
The pair did not stop there, as they claimed another gold medal in the Senior Mixed 4X alongside an ex-Olympian in Charles Cousins. Due to Rouille’s impressive network in the rowing community, his students were able to compete alongside the British rower who competed at the 2012 London Olympics.
Rouille also had the pleasure of coxing the boat to a gold medal, providing the veteran with the opportunity to watch the Olympian in action with the Jersey athletes.
An incredible experience meant a lot to Rouille: “I support the athletes as much as possible, the lovely thing is that Ryanna said that to row with Charles was on her to-do list as a rower. It just ticks all the boxes as a coach.”
The pair also competed together in the Senior Women’s 4X in which they achieved a bronze medal. Woodhall rounded off her weekend for her Bournemouth University club, claiming a bronze medal in the Bronze Senior Open 4X.
Rouille also gathered a number of medals across the championships. Alongside Jersey rower Stephen Reed, Rouille claimed silver in the Open 4X. Despite competing in the Masters (50+) category, the quad’s time was so impressive that they claimed second place in the Open category.
Rouille said: “We rode in the Masters category. We went so well that we beat most of the open, and came second in the whole race. They allowed us to ditch the Masters gold for a silver in the Open.”
He claimed two gold medals as a competitor. Reed and Rouille both secured top spot in the Mixed Masters 4X categories. Rouille was at the summit of the 50+ category as a part of the Coastal Barbarians Rowing Club. While Reed topped the 40+ age category alongside members from the Eastbourne Rowing Club with an emphatic time of 12:15.
The rowing veteran claimed his third gold as a competitor in the Men’s Masters Open 2X category, an impressive 12:47 saw Rouille claim yet another medal.
Rouille’s final medal of his haul came through coxing Clifford and Woodhall to a bronze in the Women’s 4X category.
Reed’s last honours of the weekend came in the Open 2X for the Whitby Coastal Rowing Club with a rapid 11:14, narrowly missing out on the gold medal by three seconds.
Rouille couldn’t hide his excitement following his team’s performance: “It was absolutely amazing, to compete at the British National Championships is fantastic. I’ve been rowing a long time now and after being mentored into a coach and starting up our performance group, this is just absolutely brilliant.”
He continued: “We came back with a massive bunch of medals, which is great, the club did really, really well. The Jersey Rowing Club as a whole made a great account of themselves in the British Championships.”
Rouille broke down the importance of the Jersey Sport Foundation and their involvement in rowing: “They mentored me into becoming a coach rather than an athlete as I was older, and I got involved in ‘Project Gold’ and we’ve now turned it into the performance group.
“I focus on supporting the athletes, I work with the club captain Gerald Howell and he helps immensely when trying to provide for younger athletes.”
“The support that we are able to provide is giving our Islanders such a fantastic name in coastal rowing, it is right up there at the top in Europe, which is very good.”
The Jersey athletes evidently made a brilliant account of themselves overseas, and with the help of Rouille and the club, Jersey’s rowers will continue to grow and compete at the highest level.
