Michigan State University Athletics
Regan, Jamrog Shine In National Rowing Spotlight
6/24/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
East Lansing, Michigan - Two former Spartan rowers have been busy with successful runs at US Rowing Regattas, as 2010 graduate Emily Regan (Buffalo, NY) won a pair of gold medals (in the straight four and the eight) at World Cup 2 on Lake Varese in Italy, and 2015 Michigan State graduate Olivia Jamrog (Edwardsburg, Mich) qualified for the Under-23 World Championships as a part of the women's quadruple sculls.
Video: US Rowing U23 Trials Finals Winners Reel, Courtesy of Row2K (forward to 4:12 for Jamrog in the LW4X)
Photos: Row 2K Sunday World Cup II Regatta â€" Non Olympic Finals (including Regan in the straight four)
The most decorated rower in the history of the Spartan rowing program, Regan pushed her medal count to seven in her five years since joining the US Rowing program in Princeton. Racing twice just hours apart, she added to her already-impressive trophy case with a pair of gold medals on Sunday, earning first place finishes in both the straight four, as well as in the eight. Regan also owns two prior gold and one silver medal from World Championships, one prior gold from the World Cup, and also earned a gold medal in the U23 eight.
Regan began Sunday morning with a win in the straight four (no coxswain). The women's four entry of the United States Training Center â€" Princeton's Olivia Coffey , Regan, Lauren Schmetterling and Grace Luczak, was the first US crew to win gold on the day. Leading from the start, USA2 easily won in a time of 6:27.41. Australia was second in 6:33.49 and Germany was third in 6:39.08.
Several of the US entries had some last-minute shuffling due to illness, but that setback was not a troubling one for the US eight, as it overcame a significant deficit after the first 500 to finish ahead of the field and garner Regan her second gold medal of the day. Team USA got out in front from the start, but were pushed hard by Canada and Great Britain. After being down by six seats to the Brits in earlier heats and having to work their way back in, Regan and her crew knew that a better start was critical, and sticking to the race plan and being aggressive throughout the race was going to play a huge part in determining their fate. In the end, the U.S., which has dominated the event the last ten seasons, won again, this time in 6:03.27. Canada was second in 6:05.53 and Great Britain was third in 6:08.66.
"It was especially fun to have the opportunity to double up and race in two different boat classes," admitted Regan. "The entire US team had an awesome regatta, which makes the whole experience even better. Our team has been working so hard this year â€" we've done more volume than any other year I've been on the team. We also have an incredible amount of depth. So that allows us to really push each other in practice. Now, it's time for us to just re-focus and continue to train hard â€" the selection camp for the World Championships will be here before we know it."
Regan, who has been in residency with US Rowing since her graduation in 2010, is aiming for a spot on the Olympic team for the Summer Games in Rio next year. After returning stateside earlier this week, she has jumped back into training in preparation for the final selection camp for the World Championships, which will be held in the end of July.
The U-23 Championships were held June 21-24. In Tuesday's U23 Trials finals on Mercer Lake in New Jersey, Jamrog was a part of the lightweight quad, representing the GMS Rowing Center in Greenwich, Connecticut. The entry raced uncontested, and posted a time of 6:57.42. The lineup of Gabriela Purman, Jamrog, Bridget Konttinen and Southern California Sculler Club's Alex Coultroup. Under 23 crews will compete July 22-26 at the 2015 World Rowing Under 23 Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
Players Mentioned
