‘Rowing Association Is Very Proud Of Dara’
[Written by Stephen Wright]
Bermuda will be represented in Olympic rowing for a third straight Games when Dara Alizadeh competes tomorrow [July 27] – with the Bermuda Rowing Association already planning to continue that trend for the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Alizadeh is making his second Olympic appearance in the single sculls after debuting at the 2020 Tokyo Games, picking up the proverbial baton from Shelley Pearson, who participated at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games.
Pearson became the first Bermudian Olympic rower since Jim Butterfield at the 1972 Munich Games.
André Perez, the Bermuda Rowing Association [BRA] president, said the rowing community was proud of Alizadeh’s success and hopes the island can unearth another rower for when coastal rowing makes its Olympic debut in four years.
“The Bermuda Rowing Association is very proud of Dara’s second Olympic Games appearance,” Perez told Bernews.
“He has worked hard to qualify again and deserves to be there. We would like to thank the Bermuda Government and the Bermuda Olympic Association for the financial support they provided to Dara to help him achieve his Olympic dream.”
Coastal rowing has two main disciplines: an endurance version, with athletes racing six to eight kilometres, lasting several days, and beach sprint rowing, contested over 600 metres.
Perez said the BRA plans to invite specialised overseas coaches to the island to identify and nurture talented coastal rowers.
“As coastal rowing will be added to the 2028 Los Angeles Games, we hope to be able to send someone to represent Bermuda,” Perez added.
Bernews will be providing comprehensive coverage of Bermuda’s athletes in the coming weeks.
- View the ‘Best Interview The Best’ series here
- View profiles of all ten athletes representing Bermuda here
- View our dedicated website Bermuda2024.com here
- View all our articles on the Bermuda 2024 Games here on Bernews
- View our ongoing live text/photo/video updates here
I too am extremely proud of Dara and his ascension in his field. To witness your passion over the years has been a pleasure. May you climb higher than ever in this the biggest challenge of your career.
All the best Dara