Saints Rowing

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• Squads

  The club is divided into four squads, Senior Men and Women and Novice Men and Women, plus Coxes. The men’s and women’s squads at each level tend to train together, and the whole club travel to Lochore together each week for water sessions.

  Our senior squads consist of previous novices, ex-junior rowers and most years we have athletes undergoing GB Trials and/or representing Scotland. In Semester One, the Seniors race at Fours Head, and at GB Early ID Trials where applicable. In Semester Two, we race several Head Races in the Scottish region, BUCS Head and the Head of the River (HORR) and Women’s Head (WEHORR) in London. In the Summer Racing season we compete at BUCS, where we have had record-breaking performances in recent years, including our first two gold medals in 2019. Some crews remain in St Andrews after exams to train for Scot Champs, and top crews head south for Henley Women’s Regatta and Henley Royal Regatta.

  Our novice squads are made up of students from all years of study who have never rowed before. They form close bonds very quickly, and compete at Scottish Indoors in their first semester, and are ready for BUCS Head by early in their second semester. Our novice programme is always very popular, and many move up to join the seniors after their novice year.

• Competitive rowing

  The club is aiming to be a highly competitive entity in both Scottish and British rowing. Results have seen a huge improvement in the last couple of years and continue to follow an upward curve. We are consistently the highest ranking non-GB funded programme in Scotland. We regularly send athletes to represent Scotland at HIR each summer. Outstanding performances resulted in our first gold medals at BUCS Regatta last season, as well as breaking the top 50 at WEHORR, winning the Medium Academic Club Pennant at HORR, being quarter finalists at Henley Women’s Regatta and semi-finalists and the furthest-progressing Scottish crew at Henley Royal Regatta.

  

  British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) championships

  Alongside Henley, British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) Regatta is a pivotal event in the Saints Rowing calendar. Every year sees consistent and impressive improvement in the competitive performance of the Club at BUCS. The Club, in recent history, has had multiple medal finishes and A Finals in both Men’s and Women’s events, in pairs, fours and singles, including a win in both Men’s and Women’s Intermediate pairs in 2019.

   

  WEHoRR and Head of the River

  Two of the world’s largest Head Races in London feature on the Club’s annual racing calendar. Despite our comparatively small size, the Club has had tremendous success at Men’s and Women’s Tideway over recent history. Every year since 2015, the first VIIIs have broken Club records with the Senior Women breaking the top 50 in 2018 and the Men’s 1st VIII+ finishing 63rd in 2019, winning the Medium Academic Club Pennant in the process.

  Henley Women’s and Henley Royal Regatta

  Every summer we send athletes to compete at the prestigious Henley Women’s and Henley Royal Regatta. In recent years we have had crews progress to the quarter finals of Henley Women’s, and at HRR have seen crews progress through rounds of the Prince of Wales and in 2019 our PA 4+ reached the semi finals.

• Flat-water training facilities

  

  Lochore Meadows Country Park

  Loch Ore provides 1.4km of beautiful open water in central Fife, and consistent and predictable training conditions all year round; it is small enough to allow for easier coaching, yet large enough that all our crews are able to train at once.

  A 45-minute drive from St Andrews our water-training base is a beautiful place to row, but also provides the perfect location from which to expand the club, in terms of both the quality and quantity of boats representing the University.

  The Club has a growing fleet, including our new Filippi 8+, and top quality boats of all sizes.

  Lochore allows the Club consistent and frequent training conditions, despite its smaller size, and this is supplemented by trips and training camps across Scotland and further afield to give access to larger expanses of water.

  

• Coastal training facilities

  

  East Sands Beach, St Andrews

  East Sands Beach is now established as one of the best locations in the country for Beach Sprints and is home to our Coastal Rowing programme, including our fleet of coastal boats.

  With the East Neuk enjoying a unique microclimate that consistently ensures this part of Fife is one of the driest parts of the country, coupled with the favourable geography of the coastline, and proximity of amenities provided at East Sands Leisure Centre, St Andrews offers an unrivalled year-round training and racing venue for Coastal Sculling.

  With easy access to the water from the harbour, or directly from the beach, it provides suitable access to the North Sea in all conditions year round.

  

  East Sands is one of the premier coastal rowing venues in the UK, and has hosted several national Beach Sprint Competitions and training camps for national teams, including:

  • inaugural Home Internationals Regatta (HIR) Beach Sprints Championships (August 2022)
  • inaugural Scottish Rowing Beach Sprints Championships (May 2024)
  • British Rowing Beach Sprints Championships (August 2024)

  

• Performance centre

  

  The University Sports Centre is the main land training base for rowers during the week, and provides students at St Andrews with access to some of the best sports facilities in Scotland.

  Performance Suite

  As part of the performance programme our athletes are afforded access to sport specific specialist strength and conditioning coaching within the University’s top class Performance Suite – a dedicated strength and conditioning gym that provides a private space for the performance Senior squad to train undisturbed. Sessions are led by expert Strength and Conditioning accredited coaches who have a wealth of lifting and coaching experience and have written plans for athletes competing at the highest level in Scotland, UK and on the European circuit.

  Athletes have access to a wide range of additional indoor and outdoor sports facilities at Saints Sport, which are available all year round.

  Indoor facilities

  • dedicated performance suite
  • modern, spacious gym
  • exercise studio
  • four-court sports hall
  • new technical climbing wall
  • eight-court arena
  • four-court indoor tennis centre

  Outdoor facilities

  • 13 grass pitches
  • full-size floodlit 3G synthetic pitch
  • sand-dressed synthetic pitch
  • four tennis courts
  • additional multi-sport grass pitches
  • multi-sport courts