Category: Caroline Lind

American hero and Olympic gold medal winning rower Jason Read will give the keynote address at the 2017 Celebration of Rowing banquet, event chair Jackie King is pleased to announce.

The banquet is scheduled for Saturday, November 18, at Sedgefield Country Club with admission open to the general public.

“Jason Read’s life story is one of unwavering dedication, representing his country proudly and with courage at moments of unimaginable tragedy and great triumph,” says Jackie King.

A volunteer rescue squad fire chief from the age of 21, Read received the call to Ground Zero on the morning of September 11, 2001 shortly after the first plane hit the World Trade Center in New York.

Just three years later Jason Read represented his country again, bringing home the Olympic gold as part of the men’s eight rowing crew at the 2004 Athens games.

King says it is an incredible honor to have Jason Read join the Triad rowing clubs for this occasion. “Earlier this year High Point Rowing Club purchased an eight-man shell bearing his name from his alma mater Temple University. None of us knew who he was then. We do now and we are so looking forward to welcoming Jason to North Carolina.”

B U Y   T I C K E T S

The Celebration of Rowing banquet is in its fourth year of recognizing an appreciation for our sport and our local rowing community. Celebration of Rowing is the one time each year when the Triad rowing community gathers to honor its own and enjoy hearing from a keynote speaker who has made a national impact on the sport of rowing.

Read will follow a illustrious line of guest speakers in recent years who have each had a national impact on the rowing community:

High Point, NC – Greensboro Crew rowers and parents joined almost 200 rowers from High Point Rowing Club, Wake Forest University Rowing, and High Point University Rowing at High Point Country Club on Saturday night to induct double Olympic gold medalist Caroline Lind into the Triad Rowers’ Hall of Fame.

The occasion was the Celebration of Rowing banquet, an annual dinner to show appreciation for the sport of rowing and the local Triad rowing community. Celebration of Rowing is the one time each year when the Triad rowing community gathers to honor its own and enjoy hearing from a keynote speaker who has made a national impact on the sport of rowing.

Jack Carlson, author, archaeologist, and national team rower served as guest speaker at this year’s prestigious gala. Jack is a three-time member of the United States national rowing team. He is also the author of the acclaimed book Rowing Blazers and on Saturday evening he gave a riveting presentation on the many traditions and secrets of club rowing social attire. 

Jack Carlson continued a banquet tradition of introducing world renowned rowing leaders to the Triad. Cutting edge rowing boat maker, Misha Joukowsky, spoke in 2015 and Caroline Lind was the inaugural guest speaker in 2014.

Also honored at the banquet was Greensboro masters rower and Crew Mum, Julie Higgins. Julie was presented with the Julie Higgins Cup, a perpetual award which will be presented annually to a Greensboro crew parent for service to the youth program.

But the highlight of the night was the induction of Caroline Lind into the Triad Rowers’ Hall of Fame.

Gene Kininmonth, the founder of both Greensboro Crew and High Point Rowing Club, enjoyed the honor of making the proclamation statement for Lind’s official induction.

Lind, a Greensboro native won two Olympic gold medals – first at the Beijing Games in 2008 in the United States women’s eight-oared crew and then again at the London Games in 2012. Lind also won world championship titles for the USA in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, and 2014.

She was declared the World’s Female Rower of the Year in 2014 by FISA, the international governing body of the sport.