2024-10-15 03:01:00
The Argentine rowing team, with the Sonia Baluzzo duos–Evelyn Silvestro and Alejandro Colomino-Pedro Dickson, “achieved the objectives set and obtained the best historical placement for the “light double pair” category in the Olympic Games, admitted Jorge Enriquez, who has been a member of the national team’s coaching staff since 2017.
“With the boats that went to the Games we were able to achieve the objectives set from the beginning, which were to be among the 12 best and in this way obtain the best historical position for the category. This meant enormous joy for the entire team after many years of work for both boats,” Enriquez highlighted in an interview with Page/12.
And he added: “I see that we are at a crucial moment and that if all of us who are in this push in the same direction and with the same forces, the sport should improve in the future. And with this I say that there is a future, we have to be patient and continue working hard from each place.”
Enriquez, born in San Fernando (province of Buenos Aires) 52 years ago and who has been coaching the men’s boat since last year, was, as a rower, a South American multi-medallist, who competed in the Olympic Games. of Atlanta 1996 and won the silver medal at the Pan American Games in Mar del Plata 1995. In addition, he was a 12-time national champion and was a coach at the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympic Games and is the current coordinating director of the Municipal School of Tiger Rowing.
In March of this year, Sonia Baluzzo with Evelyn Silvestro and Alejandro Colomino together with Pedro Dickson achieved qualification for Paris in the light double pair events in the American Deputy Pre-Olympic in the Rodrigo de Freitas lagoon in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where they participated 78 athletes from 21 countries.
Baluzzo and Silvestro won the gold medal with a time of 7m45s45/100 in Final A, while Colomino and Dickson came in second place in their final with a time of 6m54s94/100.
In this year’s Olympic Games, the women’s duo finished in twelfth place by finishing sixth in the B final (from seventh to 13th place) with a time of 7m25s86/100 in the regatta that France conquered with 7m03s24/100.
Meanwhile, the men’s duo finished 12th, placing sixth, with 6m31s86/100 in the B final, which they won with a record of 6m19s73/100.
Among the top twelve boats, including the A finals (from first to sixth place) in both branches, only two American boats finished above the Argentine representatives: the United States, sixth in women in the A final and Mexico, fourth in the men’s final .
Argentine rowing won one gold, one silver and two bronze medals in the Olympic Games. The gold was won by the duo made up of Tranquilo Cappozzo and Eduardo Guerrero in Helsinki 1952; Alberto Demiddi won silver in single sculls in Munich 1972; and the bronze medals were won by Demiddi himself in the same event in Mexico 1968 and by the duo formed by Julio Curatella and Horacio Podesta in coxless two in Berlin 1936.
—Before the Olympics you said the goal was for both boats to reach the semi-finals. The two crews surpassed that bar and managed to get into the B finals. How do you rate those performances and what do they mean for Argentine rowing?
—With the boats that went to the Games we were able to achieve the objectives set from the beginning, which were to be among the 12 best and in this way obtain the best historical position for the category. This meant enormous joy for the entire team after many years of work for both boats.
—In the A and B finals of both events there was only one boat from the American continent above the Argentinians: the USA in the case of the girls and Mexico in the case of the men. What does it indicate and what does it represent for the future?
—With respect to that comparison of America, it is very important because it positions rowing in a prominent place within the continent both for the girls, and it is also the only women’s boat in Latin America to achieve that position. For the men, having been behind Mexico, the last Pan American champion, and so close positions us very well. And for the future these results help us to continue raising the level of the rowers who come after us. Raise the level of rowing in general.
—What future do those two boats and the Argentine team in general have?
—These boats cease to exist at the Olympic level to make way for coastal rowing, but the athletes are the ones who set the bar high for the rest and makes everyone want to be like them. Therefore, as I said before, it raises the level of the entire National Team. Good results always give hope and great desire for the entire team.
—¿Why aren’t there rowers of the stature of Santiago “Pollo” Fernández, Ariel Suárez, the Rosso brothers, Gabriela Best or Laura Abalo?
—Well, of all the people you named, most are unique and that is why it is not every day that we meet someone with those characteristics. Maybe there are not immediately any rowers with the characteristics of those you named, but there are others with a good future. We are in the middle of a great generational change and this sport needs a lot of work and time. The work is being done and surely with time the results will come.
—What role do clubs have in the development of rowing today?
—The role of the clubs is, as always, fundamental because they are the ones that feed athletes into this sport. They work hard, some with more resources than others, but I assure you that they put a lot of dedication into having a rower or a shirt in the National Team. Both clubs and families invest a lot of energy so that rowing can move forward. Even more so today, with the current economic crisis, the effort is double for everyone.
—What support does Argentine rowing have? Are they enough?
—I see that we are at a crucial moment and that if all of us who are in this push in the same direction and with the same forces, the sport should improve in the future. And with this I say that there is a future, we have to be patient and continue working hard from each place. The support that rowing has comes from the Sports Secretary, Enard and the Argentine Association of Amateur Rowers. All of them make a great effort so that we can have the best for each delegation that participates abroad and for internal concentrations, but as a coach one always tries to have more resources because it is in our DNA.
—How do you describe the “seedbed” of national rowing? Do you see an auspicious outlook?
—We are working from the smallest categories so that if there is an athlete with good projection they do not escape us and, obviously, with the largest (category). I believe that a great team can be put together in a few years with the guys who are emerging. This sport requires a lot of effort, dedication and patience and I see many with those characteristics. That is why I am convinced that there is a seedbed, but we have to be patient and not rush the times.