Walton Rowing Club is an

amateur An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...

club, on the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

in England. Its large, modern, combined club and boat house is on the Surrey bank of the Thames, facing the Walton Mile straight, at

Walton-on-Thames Walton-on-Thames, locally known as Walton, is a market town on the south bank of the Thames in the Elmbridge borough of Surrey, England. Walton forms part of the Greater London built-up area, within the KT postcode and is served by a wide ran ...

about 400 metres above Sunbury Lock cut. The club organises several rowing events, and members have competed at international level.

History and events

The initial establishment of a club and affiliation to the Amateur Rowing Association took place in 1927 with the contribution of members of

Thames Rowing Club The Thames Rowing Club (TRC) is a rowing club based on the tidal Thames as it flows through the western suburbs of London. The TRC clubhouse stands on Putney Embankment. The club was founded in 1860. As at July 2022, Thames had won events at He ...

and

Kingston Rowing Club Kingston Rowing Club (KRC) is a rowing club in England founded in 1858 and a member club of British Rowing. The club is located on the River Thames at Kingston upon Thames, downstream and north-east of Kingston Bridge and Kingston Railway Bri ...

and including active members of

Thames Valley Skiff Club Thames Valley Skiff Club is an English skiff and punting club, which was founded in 1923. It is based on the River Thames in England, on the Surrey bank between Sunbury Lock and Walton on Thames. The club supports two traditional water sport ...

and the now defunct Oatlands Rowing Club. The club's first President was

Steve Fairbairn Stephen Fairbairn (25 August 1862 – 16 May 1938) was a rower and an influential rowing coach at Jesus College Boat Club, Cambridge University, Thames Rowing Club and London Rowing Club in the early decades of the 20th century, and founded the ...

. Activities ceased during World War II and in the postwar period much effort was spent on establishing a clubhouse and boat house. This was the forerunner to the present building at the end of Sunbury Lane, 1953 to 2011. The Club incepted Walton Amateur Regatta, and co-organises its merged-with-Weybridge Regatta successor Walton and Weybridge Regatta. It organises in its own right since 1978 Walton Small Boats Head, a major December event in the rowing calendar. The club was the first to have competed at National Schools Regatta as a non-school club – this was in 1976.

Notable members

The most successful Senior international rower who trained almost contemporaneously at the club was

Steve Trapmore Stephen Patrick Trapmore (born 18 March 1975) is an English rowing coach and former rower who represented Great Britain at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. He is currently the High Performance Coach within the Great Britain Olympic Rowing pro ...

, who stroked the winning Great Britain men's eight at the Sydney

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

and won a World Championship title two years later in a GB four. He went on to retire with a back injury in 2003 and become a longstanding Olympic Rowing Programme and head Cambridge University coach. The club has for many decades taught to row and scull many juniors and adults. After the setting up of the Bisham and Caversham Lakes training centres, and advent of lottery funding, only a very small number of clubs in England see any training from the Great Britain squad members. Many former members, after Walton Rowing Club experience at national championship level and/or international events, have become part of the Great Britain squads, some having secured a university rowing scholarship or access to the regional elite start programmes. While members or recently re-affiliated, nine men's juniors between 2007 and 2013 were selected for World Juniors, or World U23s.

Honours

British champions

Henley Royal Regatta

:¹ With Trent Rowing Club :² In other years: Runners-Up (composite: half of crew) four times since the event's 1992 inception, and as entire crew once, 2011.

References

External links

Walton Rowing Club official website
{{United Kingdom rowing clubs Sports clubs and teams established in 1927 Rowing clubs of the River Thames Sport in Surrey Rowing clubs in England