Although most rowing takes place in the fall, the Gaels are getting ready to jump in the water this month after qualifying for the Pan Am Games Qualification Regatta.
Queen’s Rowing had an impressive season, racking up multiple medals at various regattas this fall. With a handful of athletes who competed in the National Rowing Championships—and two athletes competing for Team Canada—it’s clear the Gaels are a force to be reckoned with.
After this success, select members of the team qualified for the National Rowing Championships in Duncan, BC.
Claire Ellison, Jacquie Groenewegen, and Shaye de Paiva earned bronze in the U23 women’s pair event with Andrew Hubbard taking silver in the U23 men’s single event and a bronze in the men’s single.
Both Hubbard and de Paiva have been huge assets to the team this year, leading to them being selected alongside 15 other athletes for Team Canada in the Pan Am Games Qualification Regatta on April 15 to 19 after being recruited by Rowing Canada Aviron (RCA).
RCA is hoping to qualify nine boats at the regatta, which includes men’s and women’s sculling singles, doubles, and quads, women’s sweep pair and four, as well as men’s sweep pair and men’s lightweight double. The 2023 Pan Am games will take place in Santiago, Chile next fall.
Queen’s Head Coach Katie Bruggeling is also making waves after being recently named RCA ‘Made in Canada’ Coach—a program for coaches who aspire to train Olympic and Paralympic coaches as part of the RCA High Performance program. Katie worked as the Queen’s assistant coach for three years before transitioning into the head coaching position in 2021.
“We are process oriented,” Bruggeling said in a press release.
Currently, Coach Bruggeling trains both the men’s and women’s teams at Queen’s and works as a performance coach for the Kingston Rowing Club.
The rowing team also has a Novice program which allows students with no prior rowing experience to train alongside the varsity squad and learn the basics of the sport.
“We do have a lot of crossover with a lot of athletes moving up to varsity, which is really cool to see. It’s definitely a cool opportunity for students,” Hubbard told The Journal.
Queen’s Rowing made their debut of the season back in October at the Head of the Trent regatta in Peterborough, Ontario. The Gaels racked up quite the collection, including seven first place finishes, two second place finishes, and one third place finish. Their following meet, the Brock Invitational, was unfortunately canceled due to high winds and unsafe conditions.
In late October, the Gaels had a phenomenal performance at the OUA Championship, taking home eleven medals, with the women’s team finishing second overall and men’s finishing third.
The rowing team attended the Canadian University Rowing Championships in Port Dalhousie, Ontario, where the Men’s and Women’s teams both finished fourth overall, barely missing the podium. At the regatta, Queen’s women’s eight and the men’s pair took home silver medals, while the women’s lightweight four took home the bronze.
Most recently, the Gaels competed against the Western Mustangs on April 2 in London, Ontario, in a fun race to finish their season before moving into preparations for
next year.
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