Our Partnerships

Partnerships are key to Rowing Ireland and our objective is to agree on significant partnerships with Irish universities in developing a clear pathway from club to university to high performance.

In November 2020 Rowing Ireland was delighted to announce its first key partnership with the signing of a new and exciting partnership agreement with Queens University Belfast. This agreement will see Queens employ a full-time head rowing coach, with support from Rowing Ireland and Sport NI, to further develop their high-performance programme at the University, in line with the Rowing Ireland training methodology and vision.  

Queens will now become the first Rowing Ireland Partner Pathway University in the country, to create a clear and sustainable pathway in the region whereby young and talented juniors attend the University to continue their development to represent the University at the highest levels and ultimately the U23 and senior Irish teams’.  

Speaking about the agreement Queens Performance Sports Manager Aidan O’ Rourke commented ‘’Queens have a tradition of producing outstanding rowers reaching back generations. In partnership with Rowing Ireland, we want to build on those foundations and increase our depth across all levels to the betterment of our clubs and athletes. Our aspiration is to continuously improve how we support our rowers and establish Queen’s as the premier rowing University on this island.” 

Other News:

John Armstrong has been appointed as full-time head rowing coach to Queens University Belfast, with support from Rowing Ireland and Sport Northern Ireland. John brings with him a wealth of experience and will reinforce and strengthen this new performance partnership.