The South African Men’s Lightweight Four rowing team, which include Old Andrean James Thompson and two Old Andrean Coaches, Roger Barrow, Head Coach, and Paul Jackson, Lightweight Fours Coach, have won a silver medal at the World Cup Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland and have made the 2012 Olympic Rowing team.
The South African Men’s Lightweight Four rowing team, which include Old Andrean James Thompson and two Old Andrean Coaches, Roger Barrow, Head Coach, and Paul Jackson, Lightweight Fours Coach, have won a silver medal at the World Cup Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland and have made the 2012 Olympic Rowing team.
James Thompson joined St Andrew’s College in 2001 when he began rowing. “One of my luckiest breaks in the sport was that by my second year rowing I was in the First Team squad under Coach John Gearing. We finished with three gold and two silver medals from the Junior National Championships and two golds and a silver medal from the National Schools Boat Race,” James said.
“My highlight in College colours was making the Semifinal at Henley Royal Regatta in the UK. After having now competed for South Africa at 16 international regattas, this one for St Andrew’s still stands out as special. We were the first SA school crew to get to the semis at Henley – and still are.”
Thompson, having taken up rowing professionally, is studying Sport Science and Psychology in Pretoria.
When asked what it took to make a great rower, Thompson said, “Rowing needs to be seen as a lifestyle. If you are not interested in the process of preparing for more than the results, you will not make it in the long run. We race maybe two or three times a year internationally, but we train 48 weeks of the year for those regattas.”
Thompson is now training harder than ever before, gearing up for the Olympics. “Most likely,” he said, “my best rowing is still ahead of me.”
