The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@treibunemedia.net

DIRECTOR of rowing and head coach Rob Gibson said he was very impressed with the Windsor School Albany’s 10-member team that captured a pair of silver medals at the Brenderson Chase Regatta in Sarasota, Florida, over the weekend.

Isaiah Ellis, a 16-year-old 12th grader, led the way for the team with his silver medal performance in the men’s under-17 singles 1x, while Priya Alexander (14), Alessandra Callender (15), Emman Reynolds (15), Brooklyn Louis (15) and Emma Johnston (13) teamed up for the other silver in the women’s under-17 Coxed Four 4+.

“The performances of the team exceeded our expectations,” said Gibson, who was assisted by Kali Brown.

“We arrived late on Friday evening due to maintenance repairs of our aircraft. “By the time we got to Tampa and drove to Sarasota, the course was closed, so we couldn’t go for a practice run. So the team did well. They raced in multiple events. It was a wonderful weekend and the team represented Windsor School and the Bahamas with integrity and pride.”

If they had gotten there in time to practice, Gibson said he’s convinced that both Ellis and the girls’ team would have had a better chance to win the gold.

The other members of the Windsor team were Jake Young, 17, Andre Forbes, 17, Sandor Bianchi, 16 and Malcolm Menzies, 15.

Ellis, competing out of a field of 29 competitors, said when he decided to attend a rowing summer camp three years ago as a student at St John’s College, it changed his life because he was so impressive that he earned a scholarship at Windsor School. He noted that he’s seen a dramatic improvement in his performances as he earned his third consecutive silver medal overseas.

His previous performances came in Virginia and Texas. “My single race was amazing. Being able to do a 5k on such a wonderful course was amazing,” Ellis said.

“I was very pleased with the way I performed.”

Despite his latest performance, Ellis felt that if he can improve on his weight and get his oar off the water, he would be more fluent in the future.

As for the Windsor School rowing team, Ellis said they couldn’t ask for a better coach than Gibson, who has enabled them to develop a family-oriented atmosphere with their team-mates, which both attribute to their success.

“This is just a great environment to be around,” he stated. “I’m just glad to be a part of the team.”

Gibson, a three-time Canadian Olympian who has been working with Windsor Academy for the past three years, said the progress of the programme at Windsor School has been moving steadily in the right direction. “We have a lot of interest here at the school in competing on the rowing team,” he said. “We have 10 members on our senior team and we have 11 members who have been trying out for our club team, which trains once or twice a week after school.

“The top team trains up to seven times a week right now and the other team just trains once or twice a week. It’s a good number, but we look forward to expanding the team as we look forward to purchasing more equipment.”

While he calls it both a challenging and a rewarding experience for him personally, Gibson said the future is very bright for rowing, both at the school and in the Bahamas as well.

“I think the young athletes that I have seen here are exceptionally resilient and every time we get an opportunity to go out and perform, they always rise to the occasion, so I’m a very proud coach.”

Gibson said at the end of this semester, Windsor School will hold a 2,000 metre rowing test on Thursday, December 7 at the school where the members will be drilled on their physical fitness and their potential of the sport.

“It’s the main source of information that the college coaches use to recruit potential rowing members for athletic scholarships,” Gibson said.

As they begin the new school year, Gibson said they will look at taking the team to another Florida regatta in January or February. There are a number of other regattas that the Windsor School intends to participate in as the school year continues.