Worlds 2011 Blog: Magic About This Place

Lake Bled from Bled Castle (Photo: B. Kitch)
It's Day Six at Worlds, and I just can't stop taking pictures. Yesterday evening, I made a circuit of the lake, moving around the south side on foot for the first time. I have to include a few photos here, with a disclaimer being that none of them feature any rowing.

The view from the Press Box in the Grandstand (Photo: B. Kitch)
In some ways, this regatta is like Henley Royal, in that it's a relatively small piece of geography that we're talking about, with a huge concentration of athletes (roughly 1200 of them), and all of them walking down the same paths and storing their boats in the same places. It's been thrilling in the same way that my first trip to Henley was, meeting all these people whom I've watched on broadcasts and webcasts and DVDs from previous World Championships and Olympics, and I'm thankful for every minute of the experience. It's also been quite fun reconnecting with people I've met in the past, and relaxing a bit once the racing is done for the day.

The island, from the South (Photo: B. Kitch)
The list of interviews continues to grow, with updates being embedded into the 'Videos' page on the RowingNews.com website.

I've not quite screwed up my courage to the sticking point about swimming to the island, but I've got to get that done before leaving. Before diving in, though, here's a quick video that reveals the secret behind the speed of the Dutch men's eight, thanks to Olivier (see below).



More to come through the weekend as the finals continue in Bled!

-RR

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