HENLEY-ON-THAMES
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The 2007 Henley Royal Regatta is over and what a Regatta it was! Despite some inclement weather which delayed preparations to the Regatta site, it all came together in the end and the Stewards delivered a magnificent event yet again.
The Regatta itself had to endure bad weather on Wednesday and Thursday but as the week progressed the weather improved and finals day (Sunday) was a fine day.
There were some epic races that had us all at edge of our seats. Campbell versus Drysdale in the final of the Diamond Sculls and Shrewsbury School's victory over Brentwood College School, Canada by 1 foot in the final of the Princess Elizabeth - does sport get more exciting?
Just indulge us for a moment and reflect on the Regatta and compare and contrast it with some other sports. This year's regatta had 288 races that included some of the best athletes in the world. The timetable is very strictly adhered to, no rain delays here, compare this to Wimbledon where many have spent a day and seen almost no tennis. I can recall only two very minor delays at this year's regatta and both of these were down to crew's equipment failure. The delays were quickly recovered. All this set in idyllic surroundings and you can watch it for free! Next year come to Henley!
From a British perspective it seems almost criminal that rowing does not get much more prominence in our sporting press.
Millions has been poured into the British tennis development programme and yet Fred Perry in 1936 remains the last British man to win Wimbledon. Virginia Wade in 1977 is the last British woman.
The British footballers are paid obscene amounts of money and consistently fail to deliver. 1966 was the last time they won the World Cup and a team from the British Isles has never won the European Championship! It's excuses and obscenities all the way with these boys, and as role models to our modern youth they go some way towards explaining the lamentable decline in whatever standards you care to consider.
Contrast these sports with rowing, Britons deliver every time, Olympic Champions and World Champions abound. Leander is responsible for more Olympic medal than any other club in the world! Coupled with this the sportsmen and women who are unfailingly courteous, generous with their time and wonderfully coherent. The role models for the youth of today is here, now and shunned. Britain craves sporting success, and yet we have it! right here on the doorstep! inexplicable! It's time Britain turned its sporting focus on rowing.
From our perspective the Henley Royal Regatta was a quite magnificent event, congratulations and thanks should go to the Stewards and their staff and to all the athletes who have contributed to maintain this largely unsung event as one of the jewels of the English Summer.
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