Soon after he was hired to coach the USA Olympic sculling team, coach Igor Grinko set up camp at the Augusta Rowing Club in Augusta GA, soon turning the club into a nationally recognized destination for top-level athletes. The club had just recently been reestablished in 1984 after a long dormant period that had locals looking all the way back to 1837 newspaper records for evidence of big regattas of any kind, and the presence of Igor and a heap of Olympic athletes had a rejuvenating effect on the local rowing scene that is most obvious this weekend as the club hosts both the Head of the South and the USRowing Masters National Head Race on the same weekend.
As many row2k readers know, Igor passed away this year, leaving a river of friends, fans, and admirers to mourn his passing; see this remembrance by Brian Jamieson for some thoughts on Igor's impact, not least of which is the silver medal in the men's quad his crew produced in 1996, an exceedingly rare sculling medal for the US.
As a memorial and thank you to Igor, who, despite his reputation as a taskmaster coach, was a great person to be around and made many lifelong friends in the area, the club has dedicated the two regattas to Igor, holding a Celebration of life for Igor, as well as christening a boat in his name. Here is to tremendous luck with the regatta, and godspeed to Igor, a great rowing coach and person.
Comments | Log in to comment |
There are no Comments yet
|