8 years ago Matt Harris swapped his clear, sunny winters of coaching and rowing on South Africa’s lakes for the charming London Tideway. Now, as a coach at Westminster School Boat Club, Matt regularly brings WSBC’s crews to GL Camp destinations for some much-needed sunshine, better water, and a fresh environment.
Unlike many rowers, Matt began his career in sport as a gymnast. He tells me he was “much better at gymnastics, and people know that”. His pivot to rowing only came when a schoolmate of his suggested he ventured down to the club in an attempt to fill missing seats so they could put boats forward for competition.
Matt speaks of being further “drawn into rowing because of the team aspect”. He reminisces on training with friends in South Africa, and later at university being surrounded by an inspiring group of coaches which altered his life trajectory.
At school, “I’d decided to be a doctor”, he recounts, but that changed halfway through university when “I just wasn’t enjoying it”. In an attempt to earn a bit of cash on the side of his studies, Matt joined the coaching team part-time, and realised he “was making a difference with the athletes”. It was then that he decided to pursue coaching as a full-time career, going on to become Head Coach at Rondebosch boy’s school, then Head Coach at Cape Town University. After a solid run in South African rowing, Matt tells me of wanting to do more within the sport, to which he set his sights on the home of rowing – the UK. In no time, Matt joined WSBC and has revelled in his role ever since.
At WSBC, Matt’s priorities lie with balancing the competitive nature of rowing and fostering a genuinely enjoyable environment. His enthusiasm for the club is abundant as he emphasises how the athletes continue to “amaze” him. “Sometimes I don’t know how they do it all. In the depths of winter, the kids manage to balance academics with the relentless grey of the Tideway, and they just get on with it. It’s just what they do.”. To this, Matt goes on to highlight why training camps are so important for the athletes: “they offer a needed change of scene, especially around the winter period, and having Gillian onboard makes organising it all possible.”
In recounting Sabaudia camp memories, Matt contrasts the resilience of Tideway rowing vis-à-vis the sheer luxury of Lake Sabaudia’s glass water mornings. “I think rowing on the Tideway teaches you a lot, and it took some getting used to when I moved to coach in the UK. Being able to row on it year round makes it one of the best places to train. But being on camp, and being in Sabaudia or Avis…it’s a gift.”
Matt’s time on the South African national team’s training camps both shock and bemuse me. “We’d have to get up early to set up the lanes on the lakes. But the lake had a bunch of hippos. And they’re surprisingly aggressive…You had to be watch out when you leant over the the launch”. With Matt so casual and matter-of-fact about the hippo dilemma, I can’t help but laugh as we compare it to Europe’s seemingly simple wilderness. Nothing much more than the ordinary swan or old wooden plank floating past on our Thames.
And just like that, we’re wondering what a South African GL camp could look like…
Best piece of rowing advice someone has given to you?
“Rowing is a hard sport. Don’t make it harder. Get the easy things right.”
Do you have any pre-race rituals or superstitions?
“Pacing. I do a lot of pacing”. “Aside from that, I try to keep calm for the crew “
An underrated ‘thing’ that every rower should have (i.e. equipment, snack, kit etc)
“Sugar, plenty of it, in liquid form. It’s not a new thought, but it’s so necessary. I’m also pretty prone to sugar crashes.”
Ergs or water training?
“In Cape Town it was always windy, and we’d also have to consider arranging transport to the lake. We also couldn’t be out when it was dark – for safety – so we had to do a lot of ergs. But for WSBC we’re on the water as much as possible. You just can’t beat it.”
Favourite regatta to compete in?
“I mean, it has to be Henley. It’s 7 days of madness, all crammed into this tiny English town. The Armada cup in Switzerland, with its mass start and route through the forest was also mad.”
Favourite memory on camp?
“Our early morning sessions. When we first started going on GL Camps I’d wanted to do morning sessions around 9am, but Gillian suggested we go earlier and do a bigger breakfast after. It was so worth it. And we always do it that way now. The water is just so flat, and the sky…! I remember being out in the launch with Gillian, and thinking – ‘this is awesome’.”