The Student News Site of Malvern Preparatory School

Friar's Lantern

The Student News Site of Malvern Preparatory School

Friar's Lantern

The Student News Site of Malvern Preparatory School

Friar's Lantern

Malvern Rowing: A Tradition of Excellence


Check out the Rowing Blog

Photos of Friars on the River

Plans for the Boathouse

 

 

On December 2, 2012, there will be a groundbreaking ceremony of the Malvern Prep Boathouse. The project will be finished in the fall of 2013. Malvern Prep Rowing will enjoy a state-of-the art rowing facility on the Schuylkill River in Conshohocken. The rowing team is one of Malvern Prep’s most successful athletic programs winning numerous National Championships and currently interested in expanding.

Many Malvernians do not know a lot of information about the rowing program. Most people see the rowing tanks on their tour at Morning at Malvern, never learning anything else about the program over their time at the school. Some facts about the rowing program:

  • Malvern Rowing is known worldwide as a “sculling” powerhouse. (Sculling: each rower has 2 oars, Sweeping: each rower has one oar. Malvern only sculls.)
  • Produced more than 50 Divison-1 athletes since Coach Craig Hoffman became the head coach 16 years ago
  • Rowers have attended prestigious schools such as: Princeton, Cornell, Penn, Columbia, Yale, Dartmouth, Georgetown, Cal Berkeley, Brown, MIT, St. Joes, Holy Cross, Naval Academy to name a few
  • The rowing team does not practice at six in the morning on the river

Malvern’s varsity boats have won: 17 National Championships, 10 Stotesbury Cups, 13 Philadelphia City Championships, and have been to The Henley Royal Regatta, England, five times. The Rowing team’s tremendous success gives them the opportunity to travel to some of the most distinguished races all over the world. Every other year members of the team travel to England for the Henley Royal Regatta. The team has traveled internationally to races in Egypt, Italy, Canada and England, and races in Boston, Florida, Tennessee, and New Jersey every year. The Rowing team will be traveling to Turin, Italy this month to race in the Silver Skiff Regatta, an 11,000 meter singles race.

Malvern Rowing’s success comes from spending countless hours practicing and training year-round to prepare for the championship spring season. Training includes erging, running, and lifting. Practices during the spring and fall are run out of the current boathouse in Conshohocken and these practices consist of rowing in singles or team boats (doubles or quads) on the Schuylkill.

When asked, “What has rowing done for you?” senior Captain Alex Stoczko replied, “Rowing has been life-changing. Once you ‘buy in’ to the program rowing can take you places. You become very close with other teammates because you spend so much time together and a strong brotherhood is created. I am proud to be a part of the Malvern Rowing team.”

Rowing requires dedication and hard work, if one can exhibit these traits, they can become a successful rower. Countless Malvern students have become National Champion rowers without having rowed before high school, and why not you? The rowing team is looking for anyone interested in being part of a highly competitive, highly successful team. Please contact Coach Craig Hoffman or any of the current rowers.

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