Athlone rower claims victory in famed Henley race
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Benny Dunne and his wife Mary are pictured at the boat blessing, where Benny was honoured for his contribution to the local rowing club.Image 2 of 3
Michael McDonnell is pictured at Athlone Rowing Club alongside a boat named in his honour.Image 3 of 3
Paul Gallen (back) of Athlone Boat Club pictured in action with American Dan Schley as the duo powers their way to gold at the Henley Masters Regatta.Nine local people who contributed significantly to Athlone Boat Club’s development has been recognised by having new boats named in their honour.
The boats were all blessed by local Deacon Tony Larkin at a gathering at the club premises, on Ranelagh Road, Athlone, last Saturday.
Athlone Boat Club described the occasion as “a tradition which is very important to the club”.
“We now have a number of new boats which are named, and those named are very deserving of this honour. They have all played an important role in our club. Well done to all who now hold a place in Athlone Boat Club’s boat-naming history,” the club said, while also thanking Deacon Tony Larkin for the blessings.
The names of those who now has their names inscribed on club boats are: Paul Donovan, Benny Dunne, Michael McDonnell (aka Viking Mike), Albert Flanagan, Fred and Margaret Guildea, Fergus Hannon, Judy Mannion, and Colm Mulvihill.
Meanwhile, there was huge success recently for one of the club’s most respected rowers, Paul Gallen, who claimed two prestigious gold medals at masters level in recent weeks.
Paul, a renowned rower for many years, claimed the local club’s first ever gold medal at the world-famous Henley Masters Regatta on the river Thames in England.
Paul Gallen and Dan Schley (from the USA and an overseas member of Athlone Boat Club) competed in a double scull and were successful in winning gold medal.
Henley Masters follows the same format as the Royal Henley Regatta in that it is a single elimination tournament. At the quarter-finals stage, the Irish duo were up against a fancied Upper Thames crew and expected a tough race. This proved to be the case up to the halfway mark, and then Athlone pulled away and cruised to victory.
In the semi-finals, they lined up against a strong pairing from Nottingham and after a steady start, they managed to gain a one-length advantage and held that to the finish.
The final was against the German crew of Ruderclub Saar, who had beaten last year’s winners in the semi-finals.
Paul had reached the final in the last two years but had never won the event.
“We were determined to give them a tough race, no matter the outcome, and visualised being bow-ball to bow-ball heading into the last 250m. Race conditions were quite challenging with a 15-knot crosswind,” Paul said.
“We got off to quick start and had a very slight lead at 250m. We then settled into the race and slowly moved away, winning by two lengths of open water.”
Dan Schley is a member of New Haven Rowing Club in Connecticut, USA, and is also an overseas member of Athlone Boat Club. Dan and Paul have rowed together in crews several times at the World Masters Rowing Championships.
Paul followed his Henley win with a victory at the European Masters Rowing Championships in Munich in a quad with crew-mates from Lee Valley Rowing Club and Clonmel Rowing Club. This year has been an excellent international rowing year for Paul, who was also a winner in a quad at the 7k London Head of River race with Athlone rower Alan Kenny and Tony Corcoran (from Cork) and Stephen Lockwood (Belfast).
In February, Paul also won gold at the World Indoor Rowing Championships. The Athlone native is currently preparing for the World Masters Championships in September, which will be held at Lake Bled in Slovenia.