It was a family affair for Lakeland Rowing Club at the North of England Sprint Championships.
The Derwentwater club’s representatives at Hollingworth Lake, near Rochdale, included two sets of siblings, a father and son, and a mother and son.
Fourteen-year-old Lorna Whitaker, of Keswick, was a double winner in the women’s double sculls, beating girls several years older as she took the under-16 title with 15-year-old Izzie Watson, of Dovenby, and the under-18s with Lucy Hammond, 17, of Ullock.
There was success too in the junior men’s category, where 15-year-old James Leech-Sanders, of Grasmere, rowed to glory in the under-16 singles.
In the senior racing, James Waterfield, of Whitehaven, and Alex Hill, of St Bees, won the men’s masters B/C doubles, for crews with an average age of 36-49. James also took the masters A singles, for rowers aged 27-35, while Connor Faulder, of Maryport, and Lucy’s older brother Ben, claimed first place in the open adult doubles.
Also competing were James Leech-Sanders’ 12-year-old brother Jake, the club’s youngest member; Alex’s 13-year-old son Sam, and Julia McCumiskey, the club’s chair and junior co-ordinator, and her son Liam, 16, of Keswick.
Lorna said: “It was an incredible day with a great atmosphere. I’m very proud to be part of Lakeland Rowing Club, which has such an enthusiastic and knowledgeable team. A lot of work goes on behind the scenes and everything came together brilliantly on the water with thrilling races and great wins.”
Girls’ captain Izzie added: “Competing at Hollingworth was nerve-racking and exciting. My big worry was getting lined up at the start, which we did surprisingly well considering the wind. After we set off, we gave it everything we had.”
The three girls also competed in the adult divisions in a quad with Julia, one of six Lakeland rowers attending the World Rowing Masters in France this week.
Izzie said: “The quad was a bit intimidating as it was obvious the other crews had practised together and were very experienced. We hadn’t practised, but we rowed well and finished second in our heat, although it was a close call.”
James Leech-Sanders, who sat in a racing single for the first time only a few weeks ago, said: “I got through my heat well, but in the final, I got a bad start as my right blade popped out of the water. At the bell, it was so close we didn’t know at first who the winner was.”
Julia added: “Our juniors’ commitment and enthusiasm is really impressive. We had our youngest ever single scullers racing, Jake Leech-Sanders in the under-13 category and Edward Copeland at under-14. The North of England championship is a great event for juniors as the short, three-lane course gives them a taste of side-by-side racing. Racing with the girls in the quad was a treat!”
