World Championships: The Beginning

World Rowing Championship racing starts in five hours! I'm very excited; there's nothing better in a non-Olympic year than this week. Good luck to all the US crews racing tomorrow: W4-, LW1x, W1x, M1x, W2-, M2-, W2x, M2x, and M4-. I think this last race will be very exciting, although perhaps not for the reasons I'd like. The Great Britain M4-, the heirs to the Redgrave/Pinsent/Cracknell dynasty have swept the World Cup races, and I'm sure they'll provide some interesting racing for the American crew, who are in the lane over from them in their heat.

The race I've got my eye on the most is the LW1x, where the United States is being represented by Lisa Schlenker. Her story is one of the most remarkable in modern rowing, I believe. She's currently 41 years old, and didn't even begin rowing until she was 28! Now a ten-time national teamer, she's represented the country in the lightweight quad, double, and single sculls, was the first lightweight woman to break the 7:00 2K barrier (in which she also holds the world record), and has won three silver medals at the World Championships (LW1x, 1999, 2002; LW4x, 1998). The last race for the LW1x at the US Trials was also very dramatic. The best of luck to her, who I think serves as an example for athletes everywhere, rowers and non.