University of Minnesota Athletics
Rowing Boathouse Grand Opening Set for Today
5/4/2007 12:00:00 AM | Rowing
The University of Minnesota and the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board will hold a grand opening for the newly constructed boathouse today from 2-4 p.m. at the East River Flats Park on the U of M campus. The program will begin at 2:15 p.m., followed by the tour of the facility. Demonstrations will be given in the erg and tank rooms at that time. Following the grand opening, a men’s and women’s rowing alumni reception will be held from 5-7 p.m., also at the boathouse.
The new boathouse, which holds the women’s varsity program and the men’s club team, has men’s and women’s locker rooms, an erg and tank room for winter training purposes, laundry services and coaches’ offices. The rowing teams moved into the boathouse in January with the use of the locker room and the erg room. On February 16th the boats were relocated from the tent to the boathouse storage unit. The last completion to the boathouse came on Feb. 21st when the rowing tanks were installed. The facility rests on a half of an acre on the bank of the Mississippi River in East River Flats Park.
Senior associate athletics director and senior woman administrator, Regina Sullivan, will emcee the program, which will feature several speakers. Attending the event will be athletics director Joel Maturi, Kathy Brown from the president’s office, director of recreational sports Dr. Jim Turman, and from the Minneapolis Parks and Recreational board member Walt Dziedzic. Former rowers will also speak at the grand opening, including former varsity coxswain and now assistant coach Libby Sharrow.
As part of the agreement, the University of Minnesota is partnering with the MPRB to provide programming and other opportunities to community members. Programming will include youth clinics and camps in rowing along with other sports.
The Golden Gopher rowing program, under head coach Wendy Davis, has excelled every year it has been in competition since the start of it in 2000-01. The Gophers earned their first NCAA appearance berth when they were selected as an at-large team in 2006. Along with competing in their first NCAA Championships last year, the Gophers finished second at the Big Ten Championships and won three events. Along with the team’s accomplishment, Davis was named Co-Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2006.
MInnesota took it one step further in 2007 when the team won the Big Ten Championships in Madison, Wis. The Gophers set a Big Ten record for the most points at the championships, winning four of six events. The Maroon and Gold won the Second Varsity Eight, First Varsity Four, Second Varsity Four and First Novice Eight events. Along with the team's honors, Davis earned her second Big Ten Coach of the Year award, while Jenny Barnes was named the Big Ten Athlete of the Year.
Rowing has become one of the fastest growing sports in Division I athletics. In 1992, 12.6 percent of Division I institutions had rowing as a varsity sport. By 2002, it doubled to 27.2 percent. Now in 2005, there are over 85 Division I varsity programs, including seven from the Big Ten Conference. Of the seven conference schools (Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Ohio State and Wisconsin), four are currently ranked in the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association poll.
The history of the women’s rowing program dates back to 1973 when Ron Korpi founded the women’s club team. Minnesota was one of the first institutions to offer intercollegiate competition for women. It remained a club sport until 1982 when the team was awarded “Varsity-Club” status. During a time span from 1982-1986, the varsity club captured the lightweight eight championships and qualified for four consecutive national championships. Although the varsity club was discontinued after the 1985-86 season, the club team remained on campus until regaining varsity status in the fall of 2000.
The men’s club program was established in 1957 and was founded by Oliver Bogen, Lloyd Ohme, and Dr. Charles Good. Bogen coached the program’s first eight years of existence from 1957-1964. Since the program’s beginning, the Minnesota men’s crew has earned five national IRA Championship titles, including the 2003 men’s Open 4+. The men’s crew has also garnered 15 Dad Vail Championships and 25 Midwest Regional championships.
The Gopher boathouse cost is estimated to be $ 4.6 million with $1.5 million to be raised privately by intercollegiate athletics. The Gophers have a lead gift of $125,000 dedicated to the facility. The remaining money will include residual dollars in the amount of $2.35 million from central administration, which was originally earmarked for women’s athletics prior to the merger of the two departments in 2002. An additional $750,000 is also contributed from the University of Minnesota Recreational Sports.
