Planning for the rowing regatta at the worldOutgames 2013 Antwerp is ongoing. GLRF team members have met with the organizers of the Antwerp World Outgames in June 2011 and March 2012. Currently a format is being developed that will offer an inclusive and competitive event.

The initial site selected for the regatta has shifted twice, from the Albert Kanaal just outside the city of Antwerp to the Hazewinkel FISA Class A facility 22 kilometers south of the city to now the Waterspsortbaan facility in Gent.

There are several reasons for the shift in locations. The Albert Kanaal is a commercial shipping lane that is only open to rowing on Sunday and rowers would have had to compete with pleasure and motor craft on the course.

Although the Hazewinkel facility hosts a modern, championship facility, the amount of support by local clubs is lacking. There is one on site club and of course the staff that runs the facility. Beyond that, there were conflicts with scheduled elite crews and summer time water sports programmes that use the facility every day.

The current location in Gent is a bit further away, now 60 km southwest of Antwerp, but there are a number of clubs who use the venue and can provide boats for out of town competitors (that’s huge). Also, there are no real conflicting water sports programmes that might interfere with the regatta. Finally, three clubs have signed on to organize and host the regatta so the event will be well supported.

The facility itself was built in 1954 and has played host to the European Rowing Championships. The course offers 5 lanes on a 2k course. Of course, the regatta will be shorter than 2k but some planned events will ensure the most hardened competitors will feel their mettle tested.

We encourage everyone in the GLRF community to either follow this news forum or join the group to get regular updates on the format, dates, and information for the event.