World Class Start or Stop?

British Rowing’s flagship development programme World Class Start (WCS) is set to be revamped after a review of the talent pathway. The “Pathway Insights Project” sought to understand the effectiveness of the Olympic Pathway and advise on the future of British Rowing’s World Class programme strategy. 

A statement from British Rowing to JRN explained that this was part of several adaptations to the strategy which includes supporting those athletes closer to making the transition onto the senior team and introducing new initiatives regarding Coastal Beach Sprints.

The WCS programme is a major casualty of this review and will undergo a raft of changes including halving the number of centres and the creation of a “sculling academy” in Windsor. This is a somewhat surprising decision considering the plethora of rowing centres already in the Thames Valley, although possibly linked to the Windsor Boys’ School programme which has seen astounding success in recent years. This is one example of how “existing initiatives such as Start will evolve to work more closely with community programmes within their region to help us broaden the appeal of the sport.”

Athletes and coaches on the programme have been made aware the changes have been made with immediate effect, and are being supported in making their next steps. British Rowing has not elaborated further on this subject, for example on whether coaches will be supported to find jobs elsewhere in the British high-performance rowing system or if athletes would have to relocate to join another Start centre or high-performance club.

WCS’s creation and initial success

Established in 2001 to “identify, recruit and develop individuals with no prior rowing experience to become Olympic rowers”, Start has been widely celebrated in rowing circles and the wider world of British Olympic sport. Poster girl Helen Glover was one of the major successes of the programme, famously going from sitting in a boat for the first time to winning Olympic gold in four years. Glover is just one of a host of Olympic champions who have at some point in their careers been Start athletes, including Moe Sibhi, Vicky Thornley, Alex Gregory and Heather Stanning.

Selecting tall, powerful individuals and placing them in a fast-track, high-performance programme has undoubtedly been a strategy that has been successful. London 2012 was the first time the programme demonstrated its world-beating status, with five of the ten British Olympic Champions being former Start athletes. In Rio nine “graduates” were part of the team, with four returning with gold medals. In Tokyo this fell to seven, with three bronze medallists.

It is unquestionable Start has been a frontrunner in Talent ID programmes and played a part in huge success for British Rowing, however, it could be argued that this success has dwindled and how it functions has become uneconomical.

Downfalls of the programme’s strategy

At any one time Start athletes across the country can number upwards of ninety. Many athletes are recruited because they are big and strong, with the ability to produce fast times for the traditional test of the 1km at rate 24. They are not recruited because of their training ethic or high-performance attitudes.

Whilst some coaches would claim this can be learnt over time, the sheer number of dropouts from Start would disprove this. Many recruits do not make it past the first year, wasting valuable coaching, money and resources. Additionally, for a “high-performance” programme, the lack of brutality and no clear minimal standards once athletes are on the programme is alarming. This is something other Talent ID programmes, such as those in British Cycling or Skeleton, see as a necessity to keep numbers down and streamline resources.

Whilst the creation of Start has helped improve British sculling, which traditionally has lacked in international success compared to sweep, the focus solely on single sculling has its downfalls. The very premise of the programme is based on developing the fastest single scullers. This in turn can create selfish and individually focused athletes in a sport where only one spot on the Olympic team is available for a single.

The small centres and individual training undeniably has significant benefits, but the lack of teamwork, crew boat and sweep experience does not prepare athletes as best it could for senior teams.  

Those athletes who struggle to thrive in smaller environments are not encouraged to seek out a bigger programme that could suit them better. Instead, at the start of their journeys they are sold the  “Olympic Dream” and visions of being the next Helen Glover are planted into their heads. Whilst many can thrive in individual training with one-to-one coaching, others struggle with the pressure and monotony it can create.

Many athletes end up leaving the sport, instead of finding enjoyment outside the programme and rowing in bigger squads. Similarly, the athletes with big ergs are often celebrated on Start, particularly at the beginning of their journey. Unquestionably erg scores can make a boat go fast, however, they also famously “don’t float” and a 1km at rate 24 is perhaps not the best prediction of an athlete’s prowess.

Smaller but more aerobically gifted athletes are discouraged by such a focus.

The disparity in success across the Start centres in recent years perhaps explains the decision to reduce the number of centres. Only a handful have had athletes in international teams in recent years, with just Twickenham, Bath and Strathclyde doing so in 2021-2022.

Amongst the centres to be scrapped is the former of these, Twickenham, a surprising decision considering its recent production of athletes, including 2022 World Cup A-finalist Callum Dixon. With female coaches still few and far between in British Rowing, it is surprising to see Head Coach Helen Brown lose her job. However, with the coaching structure yet to be finalised Brown’s expertise will surely not be wasted.

The way ahead

Recently appointed Head of Start and Bath centre coach, Dan Harris, has been given little time to make his mark on the programme. Taking over from Steve Gunn in April 2022, Harris had already made positive changes to the programme including implementing more crew boat experience, altering testing methods and paying regular visits to centres. It is clear Harris had acknowledged Start’s weaknesses and tried to develop a more streamlined approach across the centres, with many differing hugely on coaching ethos and training programmes.

The success of the Start programme is undeniable. Current and former Start athletes can be found in clubs across the country, many of whom would not have got into rowing if it hadn’t been for the programme. Start gave many opportunities for people to take up the sport without the constraints of their financial situation. The spread of centres across the country, not just the Thames Valley, opened up the sport to people and areas where rowing is a little known sport and turned tall, strong people into world-class athletes.

It remains to be seen whether a slimmed down more focussed approach will have the same impact or whether with less centres and therefore less access it will slowly dwindle. After 20 years it is time for a refresh and a better return for its investment.

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