West End Rowing Club is based at Saunders Reserve on

Rosebank Peninsula Rosebank (or the Rosebank Peninsula) is a peninsula and industrial suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is the westernmost point of the Auckland isthmus. The peninsula runs from the southeast in a northerly direction, with the Whau River on its w ...

, in

Avondale, Auckland Avondale is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. Located on the western Auckland isthmus, the suburb is often considered a part of West Auckland. It is located in the Whau local board area, one of the 21 administrative divisions for the Auckland ...

, New Zealand. It has won numerous national,

British Empire Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

, Commonwealth, World and Olympic titles, with four club members winning five Olympic gold medals. A current "West Ender" is

Mahé Drysdale Alexander Mahé Owens Drysdale (born 19 November 1978) is a retired New Zealand rower. Drysdale is a two-time Olympic champion and a five-time world champion in the single sculls. He is a seven-time New Zealand national champion and five-time ...

, five time Single Scull World Champion and Olympic gold medallist.

History

The West End Rowing Club was founded in Ponsonby in 1884, with training taking place in St Mary's Bay (now Westhaven). Success came early to the Club with the first regatta win being recorded in 1885. As the city of Auckland developed so did West End with the growing in numbers and successes over the early decades of the twentieth century. Even the destruction of virtually all of the Club's boats in a cyclone which struck Auckland in 1914 where large seas flooded the boathouse was overcome. In 1949 the club won its first red-coat (premier title) with victory in the premier eight on

Lake Karapiro Lake Karapiro () is an artificial reservoir lake on the Waikato River at Karapiro, south-east of Cambridge in New Zealand's North Island. The lake was formed in 1947 by the damming of the Waikato River to store water for the 96-megawatt Karap ...

. The crew included:

Don Rowlands Sir Donald David Rowlands (17 June 1926 – 18 March 2015) was a New Zealand rower and businessman. Early life and family Rowlands was born in 1926, the third child of Ruby Winifred (née Harrison) and Horace Edward Rowlands, and was raised ...

, Donald Adam, Murray Ashby,

Kerry Ashby Kerry Ayling Ashby (4 September 1928 – 3 March 2015) was a New Zealand rower. Early life and family Ashby was born in Devonport on Auckland's North Shore in 1928, the son of Catherine Adele (née Gozar) and Edward Ashby, and the older broth ...

, Bruce Culpan, Thomas Engel,

Grahame Jarratt Grahame Laughlan Jarratt (10 January 1929 – 5 August 2011) was a New Zealand rower. At the 1950 British Empire Games he won the silver medal as part of the men's eight alongside crew members Donald Adam, Kerry Ashby Kerry Ayling Ashby ( ...

, Edwin Smith and

Bill Tinnock William James Tinnock (5 April 1930 – 3 April 2017) was a New Zealand rower. William (known as Bill) Tinnock was born on 5 April 1930 in Auckland, New Zealand. At the 1950 British Empire Games he won the silver medal as part of the men's eig ...

. This entire crew was selected as the New Zealand eight for the

1950 Empire Games The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth staging of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between 4 and 11 February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. The main venue was ...

where they finished a close second, only a foot behind the gold medallists, Australia. After this first redcoat the 1950s–70s were a golden era for West End Rowing Club with the club winning a 47 redcoats and two Olympic gold medals. West End Rowing Club celebrated its centenary in 1984 with a premier title and another Olympic gold. After 115 years based at St Mary's Bay the club moved out to the

Whau River The Whau River is an estuarial arm of the southwestern Waitemata Harbour (rather than a river) within the Auckland metropolitan area in New Zealand. It flows north for from its origin at the confluence of the Avondale Stream and Whau Stream to ...

in Avondale due to redevelopment at Westhaven.

Helen Clark Helen Elizabeth Clark (born 26 February 1950) is a New Zealand politician who served as the 37th prime minister of New Zealand from 1999 to 2008, and was the administrator of the United Nations Development Programme from 2009 to 2017. She was ...

officially opened the new clubhouse in October 2001. West End Rowing Club celebrated its 125th Anniversary in 2009. West End sent its national championship eight from 2010 to race at the

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the thre ...

in the same year. With two replacements, they managed to get into the final of the

Thames Challenge Cup The Thames Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's eights at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from a single rowing club A rowing club is a club for people interest ...

on their first time.

also reclaimed his title in the

Diamond Sculls The Diamond Challenge Sculls is a rowing event for men's single sculls at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. First run in 1844, it is open to male scullers from all eligible rowing clubs.

at the same regatta.

Olympians

Dudley Storey Dudley Leonard Storey (27 November 1939 – 6 March 2017) was a New Zealand rower who won two Olympic medals. Rowing career Storey was born in 1939 in Wairoa, New Zealand. After having received an invitation to the Henley Royal Regatta, he w ...

won the club's first Olympic gold medal at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City in the

coxed four A coxed four, also known as a 4+, is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four persons who propel the boat with sweep oars and is steered by a coxswain. The crew consists of four rowers, each having one oa ...

. Four years later

Tony Hurt Anthony John Hurt (born 30 March 1946) is a former New Zealand rower who won two Olympic medals. At the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, he teamed with Dick Joyce, Wybo Veldman, John Hunter, Lindsay Wilson, Joe Earl, Trevor Coker and Gary R ...

won another for the club when he stroked the New Zealand men's eight to victory in Munich. Shane O'Brien won a gold medal at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles in the men's coxless four. Mahé Drysdale won gold medals at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics in the

single scull A single scull (or a scull) is a rowing boat designed for a single person who propels the boat with two oars, one in each hand. Racing boats (often called "shells") are long, narrow, and broadly semi-circular in cross-section in order to minimi ...

Juliette Haigh Juliette Anne Haigh (born 4 August 1982), also known by her married name Juliette Drysdale but better known by her maiden name, is a retired professional Rowing (sport), rower. Haigh was born in 1982 in Auckland, New Zealand. Her parents are Pe ...

won bronze at the 2012 Olympics in the women's pair.

References

{{Reflist Rowing clubs in New Zealand Sport in Auckland 1884 establishments in New Zealand