ROWING: The vexed question of the status of domestic athletes is again in the spotlight as the Irish Amateur Rowing Union issues notes to help rowers competing in the novice and intermediate grades to be confident they are competing at the right level.
Last year the union decided to crack down on perceived flouting of the rules and suspended Stuart King of NUIG and Rob Michael of Commercial after the National Championships.
But the punishment given to Michael proved controversial, and after a tortuous behind-the-scenes saga his ban was cut.
The notes sum up what has been hammered out at annual general meetings: regattas have now been divided into non-status, semi-status and full-status events, and a novice moves up from that grade at the end of the year when he or she has recorded one-and-a-half wins or more in specified events or a win at the National Championships in specified events.
The corresponding criterion for intermediate is anything more than five-and-a-half wins in specified events or a win in the nationals in specified events.
The union has been working to streamline its unsatisfactory registration system and the notes trumpet: "In time the registration system will record all wins and calculate each individual's status automatically."
However, the president of the IARU, Frank Durkin, admitted yesterday it would be more accurate to say the system would "alter" the status automatically - the whole process will still be completely dependent on regatta secretaries recording and logging the relevant data.
"If that doesn't happen it does not matter what system is in place," Durkin added.
Atlantic rowers Paul Gleeson and Tori Holmes have been recording excellent mileage in recent days and may land in Antigua by midweek.
Tomorrow's Lagan Head of the River should provide a few interesting pointers for the rest of the season.
At junior level, St Joseph's of Galway take on the big Northern players in Methodist College, Coleraine Academical Institute and RBAI in both the fours (first head) and eights (second head).
The senior eights is a duel between visitors Trinity and a Queen's University/Lady Victoria composite that has Martin Campbell pencilled in as the occupant of the seven seat.
