Post Lucerne Posting!

Reflections on the Lucerne World Cup

The Lucerne World Cup is now behind us.  The boats have headed back to their European training homes in northern Italy.  The VTC athletes are now back in Victoria, the women are back at their base in Italy.
It was an interesting World Cup - it featured most of the crews we will face at the London Games later this summer.  The racing was fast, supremely competitive and a great test of where we are at 60 days away from the Olympic finals.  Our performance as a team equaled what we did at the 2011 World Championships in terms of medals - two silver medals and one bronze medal in Olympic events, yet there was a sense among the team that we have not hit our stride yet and we will see more and better at the Games.
There were some very good performances - the men's pair challenging the Kiwi's, the women's eight almost breaking the US women's eight winning streak dating back to 2006, and the men's eight setting a world best time in the heats.  But underneath it all, this is a team that wants to go from being good to being great.

You may have noticed that the team racing at the Lucerne World Cup didn't race with the Maple Leafs on their blades.  The honour of having the Maple Leaf on the blade is only bestowed on those athletes and crews who represent Canada at World Championships, Pan American Games and Olympic Games.  For all other international regattas such as World Cups, Henley Royal, etc, you will see the familiar Canadian colours on the blades but not the Maple Leaf. So the next time you see the Maple Leafs on the senior teams blades will be the Olympic Games from July 28 to August 4.

Eton Dorney Course

  For the past couple of days, our National Team Manager, Adam Parfitt, and myself have been in London, England finalizing our plans and logistics for the Games.  The venue preparation is well under way, the grandstands are being assembled, the tenting areas for the athletes’ rest areas are now in place and security at the venue is in full gear.  They are expecting 30,000 spectators per day at the rowing event and from the size and length of the grandstands it looks like it could even be a higher figure.  Our logistics for the Olympic Games are quite complicated and our goal for this visit was to confirm that the plans we have put in place will meet our intent to provide the team with the best performance environment we can. The Olympic Games are a special event and rules that apply to going to events such as the World Championships are not necessarily the same for the Games. For example, all of our boats and equipment have to go through an extensive security screen prior to being allowed to enter into the rowing venue; the clothing the athletes wear has very strict rules about logos and what can and can not be shown and even the Rowing Canada logo can not be worn on any clothing at the venue.
So now after our visit, we will finalize our plans, and the team will continue its preparation. The training will be hard and focused;  we know the racing in London will be tight, and our mission during this last phase of training is to ensure that our crews are prepared to be on the right side of tight.  

Peter Cookson, High Performance Director

Setting up shop in Lucerne

Here's our tent at the Rotsee course in Lucerne!   Although the women's pair did not qualify for the Olympics, the team spirit is high, and anxiously awaiting racing tomorrow. More to come today after the draw is released at 5 pm (local).

Here's a post from Rachelle Viinberg of the women's eight:

Rachelle Viinberg

Well, the HW women arrived at our pre-world cup training camp in Italy. Even with the jet lag, the boat is moving very fast, and we are all excited about our potential. Lucerne World Cup 2 is less than a week away, and we are ready to race.

For many of the women in the crew, this will be our second and even third Olympic cycle. However, this quadrennial seems to be the most special of them all. Everything has completely come together for a successful program. We have depth, talent, experience, youth, technology, support, and a gifted coach. In my ten years on the national team, I have never seen all of these components come together at once. But it’s what we need to have a truly outstanding performance.

As this may be my last Olympic cycle, I’m just taking it all in one day at a time. It’s so easy not to fully appreciate this experience in the moment. Everything starts happening so quickly in the couple months prior to the Olympics, and it can be difficult to grasp that this is a unique event that only happens to a select few.

As I said before, this Olympic cycle is special, and we have the opportunity of a lifetime but also must remember to enjoy every minute of the journey!

Athlete Perspectives

Over the next few weeks leading to London , we will be sharing  on this blog a few thoughts from some of our athletes who will be representing Canada at the 2012 Olympic Games.  Our first athlete to share his thoughts is David Calder, the bow member of the men's pair.   London will be Dave's fourth Olympic Games and is a silver medalist from the 2008 Olympic Games.  Peter Cookson, HP Director

Rowing World Cup II: Lucerne by David Calder

In my first few years on the team my excitement would build over the last week of training before we left for the Lucerne World Cup. Lucerne is one of the most beautiful race courses in the world and one that all athletes look forward to racing at.  When I first rowed on the senior team in the late 1990s, we'd fly across to Europe only a few days before the regatta started – we were literally thrown into the fire. This trip I have been able to contain that excitement, and now, in the final week of preparation in Europe, I can feel it starting to grow.

By the time racing starts next Friday, we will have been overseas for nearly three weeks. Living out of a suitcase that that long could become destructive in many cases – but not ours. We have established a strong 'base-camp' in Italy. Our surroundings are so familiar that it feels like we have a home-away-from-home. We know what to expect for our meals; we know the lake like it was our own; we know nearly every square inch of the hotel; we know the complex directions from the Milan airport and the side streets of the small town to get us everywhere we need to go. Predictability: it's what helps us prepare to race well in Lucerne.   Over the last nine years Rowing Canada, and our athletes and coaches have developed a relationship with the people who provide us with what we need. As a result we can focus on what's important:


Going as fast as possible. 
Dave Calder

 Welcome to a behind the scenes look at the Canadian Team - The Road to London 2012!!

It's been a busy time for the National Team.....  Victoria Training Centre athletes arrived at their training location in northern Italy as they begin final preparations for the Lucerne World Cup. The London Training Centre group will depart this week for their training camp, also in northern Italy and about 70 km from the VTC training location.
 
The Lucerne World Cup will be the only major competition the Victoria Training Group will participate in prior to the Olympic Games.  Here's a full team list: http://www.rowingcanada.org/national_team/2012_lucerne/

Last week, the team was treated to a wonderful send-off dinner in Toronto prior to departure for Europe and a special thanks to Rick Crooker, Chris Cookson and the Canadian Rowing Foundation for their support of the team.

After a long flight from Toronto, the group (men and lightweights) settled into their accommodations, went down to the boathouse, unloaded the trailer, and rigged their boats. The blades have been painted with Canadian colours and are ready to shine on the Rotsee against the world's best.  The team will train in northern Italy until just before the Lucerne World Cup.  

A few more pics are posted on Facebook

Watch for more updates soon,
Peter Cookson, HP Director



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