PHOTO Left to right; WHHS Lewis Morrell (Stroke), Bradley Grant, Stephen Wright, Conner Spackman, Keely Gage (cox) row past cheering Western Heights High School supporters on their way to get their gold medals on the podium.

5 to trial for the U18 North v South lsland Regatta

Five young Western Heights High School rowers have been selected by Rowing New Zealand to trial for the team which will compete at the Under 18 North Island Versus South Island Regatta-

the first step on the Rowing NZ Pathway to being an Rowing NZ Elite Rower.

As a result of their success at the recent 2013 NZ Secondary School Rowing Championships (Maadi) WHHS Bradley Grant, Lewis Morrell and coxswain Keely Gage winners of the Boys Under 17 four will join WHHS Girls Under 17 Coxed Quad winners; Olivia Ashby and Stacey Tamblin and 41 other North Island hopefuls at the North Island trials held at the Karapiro High Performance Centre on April 19.

Western Heights High School had more trialists selected than any other North Island school. Waikato Diosecan School has four selected, St Peter’s School has four also and Tauranga Boys College ,

Auckland Grammar School, Wanganui Collegiate all have three trialists.Of the prestigious South Island rowing schools; St Bebe’s has seven trialists and St Margaret’s College and Christ’s College have four.

The final squad will be confirmed as 4 coxns, 12 girls and 12 boys.In 2012 the State of Victoria, Australia sent a team to compete and this will be likely this year.

Each girls team and each boys team will comprise of an eight, a four, a quad, a pair, a double and a single.During the regatta the 2013 Junior World Rowing trialists will compete with the Under 18’s.

The progression for the rowers after the U18 NI v SI regatta is the Junior World Rowing Championships for Under 19, followed by the Under 21 and Youth Cup events, then the Under 23 grade competing on the world rowing stage at the U23 World Rowing Championships. Rowers then proceed to elite level with the World Rowing Championships, World Rowing Cup Series and ultimately the Summer Olympics.

Rowing NZ policy is to take rowers who will finish in the top six places in their event, at any senior rowing regattas.