Skibbereen Regatta to be run off over one packed day

It is traditionally the biggest regatta of the year, apart from the Irish Championships – and the entire programme will be held on one packed day.

A dreadful weather forecast for Sunday has forced the famously resourceful organisers of Skibbereen Regatta to pull the entire programme at the National Rowing Centre back to the Saturday.

The first race is set for 7.30 am and the Division One eights’ finals should be held about 8pm, depending on how many crews withdraw because of clashes in the new programme.

“We thought it better to hold it in one day than cancel like last year. Everybody wants to race,” said regatta secretary Denise Walsh.

Those late-in-the-evening finals promise a rematch between Trinity and Commercial senior eights. Their semi-final clash was the best race of the Neptune regatta on Saturday – with Commercial the surprise winners.

NUIG also have two senior eights entered. The Division One single sculls has a Northern Ireland flavour, with senior oarsmen Tiernan Oliver and Philip Doyle of Queen’s University and Sam McKeown of Portadown hoping to lay down markers.

Top juniors Ronan Byrne of Shandon and Daire Lynch of Clonmel have impressed in Ireland trials and have their sights set on World Championship action.

The regatta starts the Coillte Grand League regatta series. The forestry company has just been announced as sponsor for the series, which also includes Metro regatta in May in Blessington and Cork Regatta in June at the NRC.

Opening this weekend’s packed programme is the University Championships of Ireland on Friday.

Trinity and UCD square off in a rematch of their Gannon Cup colours race, which UCD won.

Going well

Ireland performance director Morten Espersen reports that the three Ireland crews training in Varese in Italy in the run-up to the World Cup regatta next weekend (April 15th to 17th) are going well and that Claire Lambe has recovered from injury.

Physiotherapist Sarah Jane McDonnell has been able to watch training rather than be constantly in action.

Four more crews will compete in the World Cup, including Denise Walsh, who flies out on Tuesday.

The fact that Dominic Casey, the linchpin of Skibbereen has stayed with the Olympic-bound lightweight double has to be a good sign for their hopes in Rio.

Paul O’Donovan recently produced remarkable results in physical testing – and he stars with his brother Gary in a fast, classy Nissan video recently posted on YouTube.