Penn Pandemic Diary Penn Pandemic Diary, Entry #15: No More Races

Daniel Brennan is a senior double majoring in History and Political Science in the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania

Rowing is a sport uniquely aware of its history

Even early stage rowers are aware that their sport is one with a rich tradition of scholastic, collegiate, and even international competition. Around the world, rowers at all levels of experience train year-round to compete in spring championship regattas—many of which have been held for over a century.

In Philadelphia, high schoolers have competed in the Stotesbury Cup Race, since before the Great Depression. The Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championship Regatta—the championship race for American college crews—has been held annually since before the Spanish American War in 1898. And of course, the Henley Royal Regatta—the most prestigious race in all of international rowing—has drawn the best crews in the world to compete annually since 1839.

Naturally then, rowers are inclined to feel that they are participating in an event propelled by tradition—resistant to the fluctuations of our present moment. Even when the Ivy League announced a suspension of all spring sports, many on our team, myself included, believed that we might find a way to keep rowing. After all, American collegiate rowing after all outdates the NCAA, the Ivy League, and even some of the schools in it—and it doesn’t exactly fill stadiums with crowds. We thought crews could run these races somewhere and somehow—even if it meant forming our own pseudo-teams in private rowing clubs. However, last week the Royal Henley’s organizers decided to join the rest of the sporting world and cancel rowing’s oldest race—which has not happened since World War II—dashing all hopes of any rower still holding out for a chance to compete this season. 

All of us, of course, understand that canceling these races is not only a prudent decision, but also a necessary one amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, many athletes feel they have been cheated of a chance at a championship. Sir Henry Newbolt (1862-1938), a British athlete and poet, once called this feeling “the selfish hope of a season’s fame.” He was right. There is a hint of whining and selfishness in the complaints of many young people, particularly healthy athletes, about the cancelation of their semesters, and seasons in particular.

For my fellow athletes, it’s time we put our energy not into our sports or complaining about cancelations, but into whatever measures your state and local governments have advised citizens to take. We are blessed to be young and healthy. It’s our responsibility to help our families and our communities in response to the challenges of this virus.

But that does not mean we should not feel deep sadness about these cancelations. Dashed hopes are no less dashed by the knowledge that their demise was the socially responsible thing to do. And unlike those crew members who saw their hopes dashed and championships canceled during World War II, there’s no call to action this time but a call to inaction. That generation was asked to repel nations bent on world domination, while we’ve been asked to stay home and read quietly. Ours is the lesser burden but still it frustrates our youthful spirit.   

For the young men and women who have spent much of their lives training to win these events, victory in the fight against COVID-19 will be a return to normal or something like it.  I’m sure these races will run again one day. Yet for those of us who were nearing the end of our rowing careers and have been forced into an early retirement we will not be the ones rowing in them. Thus, our only reward will be the quiet and uncertain knowledge that our participation in this great undertaking mattered. That, and the chance to return to the rivers of our youth to watch these races, and cheer to those who’ve replaced us “play up, play up, and play the game!”

The views expressed in the Penn Pandemic Diary are solely the author’s and not those of Penn or Perry World House.