The Boat Race and GB Row Challenge have announced a sustainability and youth development partnership for 2022.
Three boats of 6 will race in GB Row 2022 with two Boat Race alumni, Andrew Triggs-Hodge OBE and Robin Bourne-Taylor CGC, competing in the same crew. The crews, highly diverse in terms of gender, ethnicity, mobility and background include Para athletes, Olympians and scientists. These crews represent British people as a whole and the hope is that this race will not only allow scientists to help our oceans but create awareness of the wonders of British waters and the need to protect them.
One of the crew members is Dr Kat Bruce, a rower and scientist Kat is an alumni of Oxford University and founder of Nature Metrics, an organization specializing in the collection and analysis of environmental DNA.
“Now eDNA lets anyone discover what species live in their local environment just by filtering water and sending the filter to the lab This gives us a chance to engage young people with nature while building critically important datasets that can guide policy at all levels”
Andrew and Robin, both passionate about youth development through sport, are leading on the engagement between GB Row Challenge and the Gemini Boat Race Bursary Scheme. Kids involved in the Bursary Scheme will be able to follow the GB Row Challenge in June remotely via an online tracker, where they can form their own teams to compete on rowing machines, and other forms of exercise, to log a distance to complete against the racing crews. At the same time GB Row Challenge will be helping to share educational content to explain the conservational and environmental importance of looking after our waters.
“It is great that Hodgey and I can use the experience we have from The Boat Race to help our crew prepare for this challenge. Through all the teams competing this year, we want to inspire kids into rowing and giving them a way to connect a sport that they love to such an important environmental purpose.” Robin Bourne-Taylor (OUBC 2001, 2002, 2003 & 2005)
