Rowing Queensland chief executive officer Matt Bialkowski has expressed the state governing body’s excitement at the expansion of coastal rowing and beach sprint participation across Queensland in the wake of last week’s news that the International Olympic Committee had given the green light to the debut of the event at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, paving the way for its possible inclusion at Brisbane 32.
While the RQ boss stopped short of endorsing any venue or region for the 2032 event, he said the state was now “actively working to grow the sport in Queensland through the introduction of a Coastal Rowing Working Group”.
Coastal Rowing Noosa secretary Peter Watson told Noosa Today he “shares Matt’s excitement, and the prospect of Coastal Rowing Beach Sprint being included as an Olympic event provides a platform for the expansion of coastal rowing which has not been seen henceforth”.
Peter continued: “While our first preference would have been to expand our activities by joining with a local rowing club, this has not been possible as yet. However, the announcement of its inclusion at LA 28 has sparked real interest among other water-based sports, in particular the surf life saving movement. Surf boat rowers already have the skills to handle short high intensity racing, as well as the eccentricities of open water, and will be able to adapt these skills to give them a real advantage in the Beach Sprint events.”
Peter said Coastal Rowing Noosa had opened dialogue with Noosa SLSC as well as the Surf Rowers League, and was looking forward to working with them to expand participation in future events. “We are also looking to encourage the engagement of members of the community who would like to try this exciting addition to traditional rowing by offering Learn to Row courses,” he said.
