HERMITAGE Academy’s young rowers have secured a memorable second place in the Scottish Schools’ Indoor Rowing Championships in Motherwell – the second year in a row they’ve finished second on the podium.
The indoor rowing initiative at the Academy, supported by Live Argyll’s Active Schools programme, reaped a rich reward at the final round of the four-event championship at the Ravenscraig regional sports facility.
The first three rounds of the championship are held in each competing school, with Hermitage posting one of the highest participation levels of any school in Scotland after more than 160 pupils took part, while 48 pupils travelled to the final round at Ravenscraig.
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Results included the following.
S1 boys: Brodie Goodfellow-Crichton 19th, Jonathan Marshall 20th, Mathew Smith-Battantyne 26th, Gregor Stewart 29th.
S1 girls: Mia Gonzaga 7th, Orla Greig 12th, Eva Rooney 13th, Isabelle Gibrat 21st.
S2 girls: Catriona Stewart won gold, Rhona MacKinnon won silver, Roisin Kavangh 7th, Millie Horrocks 15th. The girls were second overall in the relay event.
S2 boys: Cole Martin won bronze, Jamie Senior 5th, Robert Court 5th, Ben Willis 10th. The team were also second in the relay.
S3 girls: Lexy Kenhard 16th, Kyla Dorizon 20th, Agnes Borland Sinclair 22nd, Isla MacKinnon 28th, sixth in the relay.
S3 boys: Campbell Overend 4th, Makenzie Lennox 10th, Liam Riding 16th, Morgan Simmons 19th, fourth in the relay.
S4 girls: Jess McQueen 4th, Eve Greig 8th, Alexandra Macmillan 9th, Elizabeth Swain 10th, second in the relay.
S4 boys: Lachlan MacKinnon who won gold, Josh Bain 11th, Eoghain Adkins 13th, Joel Miller 16th, third in the relay.
S5 girls: Anna Sherry 6th, Emily Miller 13th, Sinead Owen 21st, Mia Rooney 22nd, third place in the relay.
S5 boys: Harry Livesay 15th, Lewis Smith 19th, Harry Green 20th, Jamie Smith 21st, third in the relay.
S6 girls: Kirsty Williamson bronze, Georgina Jennings-Maun 7th, Olivia Mates 10th, Sasha Barclay 11th, fourth in the relay.
S6 boys: Bryn Davies 7th, Jack Chapman 12th, Stewart Peden 13th, Richard Hunter 15th, fourth in the relay.
Congratulations to the all the members of the team, who all showed outstanding desire and commitment in their races to set personal bests in their performances.
The school were presented with a Precor rowing machine as reward for their endeavour and achievement. Live Argyll Active Schools are currently supporting the school in finding funds for an additional rowing machine to add to the fleet.
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The aspiration is to establish a ‘rowing studio’ to help take the school's rowing programme to the next level.
Martin Caldwell from Live Argyll Active Schools said: "We would like to say a big thank you to Hermitage Academy PE teacher Ian MacAulay.
"Ian is passionate about the lunch time fitness and rowing sessions he oversees and along with the other staff and volunteers give their time freely to enable a comprehensive extra curricular sports programme to run at Hermitage Academy, benefitting many pupils attending the school."
Any pupils interested in trying out rowing or any of the other sports clubs at the school should report to the PE department and speak to Mr MacAulay or Louise Hanna, the new Active Schools co-ordinator.
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