While a summer thunderstorm disturbed the first rounds of practice at the 2015 USRowing Youth National Championships, the sun came out as hundreds of seniors, their friends and families attended the first-ever USRowing Graduation Ceremony.
"The entire event was amazing," said USRowing Event Coordinator James Rawson.Graduation "I had a mother approach me in tears and told me that while she didn't cry through her daughter's school graduation, she cried the whole time tonight because it was about the rowing and the hard work. It was a true graduation.
"This tent was packed and full of energy with people just so excited to be a part of the USRowing Class of 2015."
With over 75 clubs represented and roughly 275 students in attendance, the event was listed as an overwhelming success and the ceremony streamed live on the USRowing YouTube page.
With about a thousand people in attendance with students, parents, coaches and teammates packed into the Sarasota VIP Tent, located directly next to the finish line.
The class of 2019 was a highly decorated one with six valedictorians and fiveGraduation salutatorians in attendance. The top rowing conferences in the country were represented as the PAC 12 boasted 48 future student-athletes followed behind the Ivy League, which had 38, 22 and 20 future student-athletes represented the Big Ten and the ACC, respectively.
"As you already know, rowing is a unique sport because it is not about the individual, but rather the whole," said Master of Ceremonies and USRowing CEO Glenn Merry. "From your boat mates to the competitors you share the starting line with, these rowers will be your lifelong friends. More importantly they will become your family."
The University of Washington held the title for the largest class of incoming freshman in attendance with 21 hopeful Huskies. The Wisconsin Badgers finished in a close second with 15 while the University of Pennsylvania rounded out the top three represented schools with 10.
Numbers aside, the event was meant to serve a purpose: to give the rowing community the chance to applaud its seniors for their hard work and dedication to a sport that demands more time and attention that any other sport their fellow classmates have participated in.
"On the water, everything is simple," said Scholastic Honor Roll Representative and Pocock Club member Maeve Anderson. "There are no math finals, science projects or applications. It is just us, on the water, with our teammates. Tomorrow we will take to the water and battle each other for inches as we stake our claim to declare ourselves National Champions. Tonight, however, we gather together to celebrate one another as the class of 2015."
Two-time Olympic gold medalist Susan Francia was in attendance as the keynote speakerGraduation for the class of 2015 with lessons to teach and medals to show off as the Olympian lauded the student-athletes not only for their dedication on the race course but also in the classroom.
"(Everyone is) here tonight not only because (they) made rowing a priority, but because (they) made their passions and dedications a priority," said Francia. "This weekend is truly an envelopment of the passion and dedication it takes to be apart of the rowing community."
As far as advice, the gold medalist had this to say:
"It is what you do with your losses that makes all the difference in the world. How you take losses and move on will be the difference between losing and winning."
In short, the event served as a perfect way to kick start the start of an incredibly exciting week as racing is set to begin Friday at 8 a.m. with the women's youth single sculls.