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Tuesday Sep 24, 2024
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Former Chief Justice of Ceylon, Sir Edward Creasy was one of the club's first captains and played a major role in creating this establishment. In honour of this fact, Chief Justice Mohan Peiris will be invited as the guest of honour for the celebrations to be held at the club on the 18 July.
The historic value of the Colombo Rowing Club is also highlighted by the 76th Madras-Colombo Regatta which will be held in Colombo on 26 July. The competition with the Madras Rowing club, which began in 1898 is said to be the third oldest regatta in the world, after the prestigious Oxford-Cambridge and Yale-Harvard regattas.
“This year we’ll be hosting the 76th Madras Colombo Regatta,” President Lushantha De Silva said. “It hasn’t been held every year, with breaks during the World Wars but it started in 1898 and is one of the oldest boat races in the world.”
The Colombo Rowing Club was founded in 1864 with the first Boat House being at the mouth of the old Sally Port of the Fort, the old Fort Railway Station. The Beira lake was then a tremendous stretch of water (before various reclamations schemes of the post first world war period) and the racing course was said to be a mile and a quarter long and almost dead straight with room for five boats abreast.
The Starting Post was just below the Fort Station and the Finish at the Travellers’ Palms in the compound of Darley House, then the Bishop’s residence. The Club Badge also carries an image of the traveller’s palm which represents the original finish at Darley House.
Apart from Ceylon Turn Club and the Colombo Cricket Club, the Colombo Rowing Club can boast of being one of the oldest institutions in the sporting world of Ceylon.
According to senior officials at the club they are now looking at having the CRC officially named a heritage site.
“We have looked at the requirements to apply for a heritage site. The requirement is 100 years and we have just reached 150” said De Silva, who further pointed out, “Rowing has spread across the country now with new clubs in Bolgoda and the Diyawanna lake, but this is where it all started.”
Rowing as a competitive sport is becoming widely popular in Sri Lanka with over 350 active participants representing about 15 institutions including schools, universities, other clubs and the armed forces.
Part of the Club’s own history also describes how the sport was developed among local schools. Royal College was the first school to start its own rowing program with the Royal College Rowing Club in 1953. In 1955 it opened its doors to schools and in 1957 the Club took in the first two student members, A.S. Mohamed and G.E.M Pereira.
In 1959 St. Peter’s College took to rowing and that November the club held a quadrangular Regatta with the two Colleges, the Government Services Rowing Club and the CRC. However St. Peter later gave up the sport and the Club then renewed its offer to St Thomas’ College, who decided to take to the water.
In 1962 the first Royal Thomian Boat Race was held, and was won by Royal College. Today, inter-school regattas such as the Royal-Thomian regatta, the oldest inter school rowing regatta in the country, and the more recently incorporated Ladies-Museaus regatta have become some of the most anticipated fixtures in the schools sporting events calendar.
As old boats such as the 40-year-old Empacher – a German boat skilfully crafted with a single strip of wood – is stored alongside its modern counterparts made of fibre glass, the Club’s boat houses represent the history of this modern competitive sport while also making available to their members the latest technology in rowing equipment. In keeping with this effort, Captain of Boats Sanjaya Mendis said: “We have also ordered eight new boats. They will be two Fours, two Sculls, two Pairs and two Double Sculls.”
Also on the Club’s agenda in terms of international inter – club regattas is the second annual Colombo-Karachi Regatta is to be held later this year. Last year the inaugural regatta was held in Colombo won by the CRC. While it is the turn of the Karachi Rowing Club to host the regatta this year, it will be held in Colombo for the second consecutive time in celebration of CRC’s 150th year.
Pix by Shehan Gunaratne
