Whakatāne rowers have enjoyed a busy and successful few weeks on the water, with club members competing at the Legion of Rowers Spring Regatta, the New Zealand Masters Championships and the North Island Provincial Regatta.

The Legion of Rowers Spring Regatta at Rotorua’s Blue Lake provided an early opportunity for Whakatāne’s growing masters women’s squad to test themselves in some tricky racing conditions.

One of the standout performances came from Amanda Johnstone and Rebecca Jones, who won the Women’s Novice Masters Double Sculls.

There was more success in the Women’s New Masters Double Sculls, where Kathy McCue and Raewyn Iremonger finished second.

The Whakatāne novice women also combined well in the coxed quad, with Johnstone, Samantha Harcourt, Jones and Iremonger, coxed by Grace Iremonger, racing to third place.

The day finished on another high when Whakatāne rowers formed the backbone of a composite Women’s Masters Eight. Debbie Rowe, Lena Cassidy-Clark, Johnstone, and McCue, with Grace Iremonger coxing, joined rowers from other clubs to claim second place.

The results were particularly encouraging for a Masters squad containing several rowers who are still relatively new to competitive rowing.

Three weeks later, Whakatāne’s Masters rowers headed to Lake Karāpiro for the 2026 New Zealand Masters Championships, where the club again featured prominently in top-three finishes.

Leading the way was experienced Whakatāne rower Graham Watt, who returned home with four gold medals.

Watt won the Men’s Masters H Single Sculls and then combined with Cambridge rower Neville Robertson to also win the Men’s Masters H Double Sculls, Mens Masters G-M Coxless Quad Sculls and Mens Masters G-M Coxless Four with composite squads.

Whakatāne’s women also produced a string of strong performances.

The newer masters women continued their impressive progression, with Johnstone, Jones and Lisa Hale, joined by Hamilton rower Vanessa Mace and coxed by  Grace Iremonger, taking silver in the Women’s New Masters Coxed Quad.

Johnstone and Jones also teamed up again in the Women’s Novice Masters Double Sculls, finishing second.

Cassidy-Clark and Hale claimed bronze in the Women’s Masters C Double Sculls, while Rowe added another bronze for the club in the Women’s Masters D Single Sculls.

Whakatāne rowers featured in several successful composite crews as well.  Rowe also picked up a win alongside Tauranga’s Richard Rennie in their division of the Mixed Masters Double Sculls, adding to a strong championship for the Whakatāne contingent.

Whakatāne’s representation then shifted to the younger generation at the North Island Provincial Regatta at Lake Karāpiro.

Whakatāne rower Hayden Grant earned selection to represent Bay of Plenty and raced across several events against some of the North Island’s leading rowers, including 3,219-metre Men’s Open Eight, where Grant was part of the Bay of Plenty crew that finished third.

Grant also raced in the Bay of Plenty Under-20 Quad, Under-20 Eight and Under-20 Double, gaining valuable experience at provincial level.

It was also a strong regatta overall for the Bay of Plenty team, which finished second in the Graeme Moran Trophy standings, behind Auckland and ahead of Wellington. 

The club recently finished its Learn to Row school holiday programme, which had a fantastic response, with more than 20 young people taking part.

The strong turnout is an encouraging sign for the future and gives the next generation of Whakatāne rowers a chance to experience the sport for the first time.  It has been a very positive start to the season for Whakatāne Rowing Club.