03 Feb 2021
Americas wrap up the indoor rowing championship qualifiers
The Americas Continental Qualifier is being run in conjunction with the annual Canadian Indoor Rowing Championships that will be held for the first time ever as an online event.
World Rowing spoke to event chair Susan Kitchen, to find out how people can follow the races live from home and what people can expect.
How to follow the racing live:
“Live broadcasts start at 8:40am Eastern Time on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th February,” says Kitchen. “The first race each day is scheduled to start at 9:00am Eastern Time and racing will run about five hours on Saturday and four hours on Sunday.
The racing will be broadcast live on the Canadian Indoor Rowing Championships YouTube channel here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7aGOjMDh-A
“Some of the racers will have webcams and will be featured live on the YouTube channel,” Kitchen says. “Mostly racing will be viewed with the Time Team Live Race Tracker, showing the racing in real time.”
A stable of seven announcers will bring the racing to life with in-race commentary and statistical analysis throughout the event.
A full schedule of events can be found here http://www.cdnindoorrowing.org/documents/PrelimRaceScheduleforWeb_000.pdf
Eligibility and how the continental qualification works:
For this continental qualification event, athletes who meet the eligibility criteria could qualify for the World Rowing indoor Championships by finishing first or in the top two in their race (depending on the event).
Anyone holding a valid passport or proof of citizenship for a country anywhere in the Americas is eligible for qualification through this process. Participants must also be entered in the correct age event for what their age will be on the day of racing at the World Rowing Indoor Championships at the end of February.
All eligible athletes race in 2000m events at the masters, open, under-23 (including lightweight for each of these), under-19 or three primary para rowing categories (PR1, PR2, PR3).
See a simple infographic to explain how many qualifying spots in each event here: http://www.cdnindoorrowing.org/schoolergdraw.html
Organising the event:
Even though no one will be racing in person, behind the scenes organisers are busy as Kitchen and her team prepare for a regatta like nothing attempted before in Canada.
“We will have a team of about 35 people behind the scenes on the race weekend,” says Kitchen. “This includes a team of officials, licensed Rowing Canada Aviron [Canada’s national rowing federation] umpires, who will be monitoring all races. They are there to ensure fairness and also make sure results are official.”
When it comes to the differences between hosting a traditional in person event and a virtual one, Kitchen is clear that while they are very different things, the experience gained from years of organising a large race has proved invaluable.
“Everything is different,” says Kitchen, “such as the technology and integrating that technology into the event. We are drawing on what we’ve done successfully before, the really big difference has been so much interest from around the globe.”
Despite being the national championship event for Canada and a continental qualifier for the Americas, racing at the indoor regatta is open to participants from anywhere in the world. “We have people from around 25 countries including Australia, the UK, Zimbabwe, Uruguay, the United States. There is even a Canadian from Newfoundland who will be racing his erg while on a fishing trawler in Alaska.”
Last chance for open qualification pathway:
In addition to the continental qualification events, anyone wishing to compete at the 2021 World Rowing Indoor Championships can go through the open qualification pathway. The deadline for participation is 7 February 2021 at 23:59 CET.
Find out more information about the open qualification process HERE
To register, visit the World Rowing Indoor Championships ENTRY PORTAL.
ADDITIONAL LINKS:
Find more information about the upcoming Americas Continental Qualifier event here: http://www.cdnindoorrowing.org/
Find more information about the 2021 World Rowing Indoor Championships (WRICH) here: https://worldrowing.com/2021/01/28/enter-the-2021-world-rowing-indoor-championships-by-7-february/
Find results from the other four continental qualifier events here: https://worldrowing.entries.regatta-systems.com/wrich/2021