Batemans Bay can boast five world champions this week, after a team from the Batemans Bay Surf Lifesaving Club took out the 180+ ladies division at the 2018 Livesaving World Championships in Adelaide.
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Danielle Heron, Barb Van Luin, Tracy Innes, and Megan Douros rowed to victory with sweep Neil Innes, beating nine other very competitive teams on their way to the gold medal.
The same team also made the final of the Open competition, but just missed out on a medal with a fourth-placed finish.
Team sweep Neil Innes said the team rowed extremely well in both events.
“Their rowing all weekend was really superb, I was really impressed with it,” he said. “They were a bit unlucky during the Open final because the tide went right out, and it’s hard to row across the shallows.”
Innes said the effort was even better considering the age gap between some of the competitors.
I’m really proud of the girls, they’ve done a lot of work to put in the effort required to win. They’re great ambassadors for the club.
- Neil Innes
“When they talk 180, that’s an accumulative age,” he said. “Two of our girls are 52, and the other have to be old enough to make it to 180.
“The girls that beat us in the Open division averaged about 23, so they’re all young and fit. Even the girls we had to beat in the Masters division have rowed at an elite level in Western Australia, so it took a lot of work to beat them.
“The masters division was big at the worlds, because a lot of people are getting into it and enjoying it. You can be 50 and still be extremely competitive.”
The team has a history of success, including the national championships in Perth earlier this year, and last year’s world championships in New Zealand.
“We went to world’s last year, and they won over there as well,” Innes said. “It’s Tracy’s fifth world title in her division.
“The two younger girls are ranked in the top 10 in the world, and our two older girls are ranked in the top eight.
“Each one of them is exceptional, which makes the accumulative crew really good.”
Innes said the team’s triumphs were the result of hard work.
“The minimum is three days a week on the water, and three or four days in the gym,” he said. “They do exactly what you’d expect from an open women’s crew. That’s the only way to compete with those open crews, is to put in the hard work.
“I’m really proud of the girls, they’ve done a lot of work to put in the effort required to win. They’re great ambassadors for the club, and the club is really proud of what they’re doing.”
