IT has been a home for rowing talent since it opened in 1846, and now Scotland’s oldest open amateur rowing club is looking to the future with a new boathouse in a million pounds in Edinburgh.
Former Olympic gold medalist Dame Katherine Grainger will be guest of honor at St Andrew Boat Club (SABC) today as she officially opens the sports centre.
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Organizers hope the decade-long development will allow the 176-year-old club to live up to its slogan, ‘Rowing for All’, providing opportunities for many more athletes of all ages in the years to come. future. year.
The club currently has around 140 members, with active rowers between the ages of 13 and 82, who mostly train on the 1500 meter stretch of the Union Canal.
A view of the old Hermiston boathouse, used by the club during the first half of the 20th century
The new facility replaces an existing boathouse in use since 1984, which was no longer fit for purpose.
SABC President Sarah Whitley said: “After more than a decade of planning, this is a great moment in the club’s 175-year history.
“The new facilities will be a game changer for us and allow us to provide many more opportunities for people to experience rowing on the Union Canal.
“Our ambition is to build the best club in Scotland, in terms of supporting top performance, but also giving people from all walks of life the opportunity to try rowing. The new boathouse will help us to achieve it.”
An SABC crew on the canal, 1938
The new boathouse sits next to the club’s current home in Meggetland on the Union Canal and accommodates space for dozens of boats, as well as changing rooms and a social area.
The historic construction was funded through fundraising initiatives by club members – from a 16-hour non-stop line by the club’s junior coordinator, to a 75-mile cycle by a 75-year-old member , at the sale of boathouse bricks and foundation stones. .
The development, which sits on land leased from Edinburgh City Council, has also been supported by investment from sportscotland and donations from charities.
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Six-time world rowing champion Dame Katherine will cut the ribbon for the new boathouse today, and the first boat – named in her honor – will be carried to its new home by club members.
The former Olympian and chairman of UK Sport will then tour the new facilities, which also include 20 indoor rowers.
A group of rowers circa 1890, believed to pose in front of the club’s original boathouse between Leamington and Viewforth bridges
Glasgow-born Dame Katherine, who is one of the UK’s most successful Olympians of all time with one gold and four silvers, is an honorary member of the SABC, having actively rowed for the club and represented the club throughout his Olympic career.
Generations of rowers have since aspired to follow in his footsteps, and many have honed their skills in his namesake boat.
The club has produced many world-class athletes and has gone from strength to strength, with members representing Scotland and Great Britain at junior and senior level.
The new boathouse, pictured earlier this month, which will officially open today
Stewart Harris, Managing Director of sportscotland, said: ‘We are delighted to be investing in St Andrew Boat Club to enable them to create a boathouse which not only reflects their proud history but also means they can build on the success of the club and provide more and better opportunities for participation.
“Projects like this demonstrate the importance of clubs to communities, to the development of the sport of rowing and to supporting athletes on their sporting journey, at all levels.”
