Ali Hassan’s Adventures in Competing in All 3 Forms of Rowing

In the recent African Coastal Championships in Tunis, Ali Hassan, an Egyptian national team rower, won silver. He told World Rowing that he had competed at the highest levels of indoor and flat water rowing as well as coastal rowing.

Hassan’s father, who also competed for Egypt at the highest level, served as a major influence on his son’s decision to take up rowing. Instead of playing football with his peers, he took up rowing at the Arab Contractors Club in Cairo when he was 15 years old. Hassan was asked to join the national team in 2010; that’s just three years after he started playing. Having fun on the water and in the great outdoors was a big part of my life, recalls Hassan. Given that he had previously competed at the lightweight level, his selection to the heavyweight pair was particularly noteworthy.

Exercising beside the water Nile, the longest river in the world, has its own special characteristics. It’s possible to be flying in one direction while laboring mightily in the other,” Hassan says of the currents. It gets very hot in the summer and the weather is often wavy. In spite of the other river activity, the river’s magnitude ensures that rowers will have enough of room.

Hassan was keen to compete in all three types of rowing, but he put in the most time on the erg during the colder months of the year

He thinks it’s fantastic that there are more regattas held indoors. It’s considerably more exciting to compete in the World Rowing Indoor Championships than in any sort of internal rowing test for selections. Hassan’s upbeat attitude is reasonable given his recent success at the World Championships, where he joyfully took gold in the men’s team 3-minute sprints.

Away from the ergo, flat water training and racing is a staple for both elite and club rowers, but Hassan explains how the advent of coastal rowing has led to new ways of training: “we now have these weekend coastal rowing camps, where we practice unique features such as the importance of running and smooth boat entry and exit.” Coastal rowing can be difficult due to factors like the racing shells’ size and weight as well as the presence of waves; yet, this just adds to the excitement of the racing season.

Hassan is trained in both coastal and flat water by separate coaches. Quickly reassuring, with a grin on his face, he says, “There is a lot of collaboration between the programmes to ensure there is adequate time to prepare for both sorts of racing.”

Hassan had a crucial role in introducing more Egyptians to coastal rowing. According to him, “I competed as the first Egyptian in a seaside rowing event last year at Oeiras.” Because of my efforts, Egypt has sent a full squad to this year’s World Rowing Beach Sprints Final and World Rowing Coastal Championships, both of which take place on beaches. My lifelong goal has been to broaden the appeal of rowing in my home country and encourage younger generations to get involved in sports of all kinds. Along with my passion for rowing, this is why I participate in all three disciplines.

I love the erg, it is difficult, it hurts a lot, but it helps you drive the boat faster,” Hassan said when asked about his preferred method of rowing. Rowing on calm, flat water is where my experience lies, so that’s what I gravitate toward. Coastal rowing is the most entertaining since spectators can watch the entire race from start to finish. This is crucial to the sport’s development and growth.

For the upcoming season, Hassan’s main objective is to increase his erg time over two kilometers. I want to be able to say that I competed in the Olympics for flat water rowing. I just recently qualified for the World Beach Games in Bali, and I can’t wait to compete in the coastal rowing event there next year.

He is also optimistic about the future of the sport, saying, “rowing is getting more accessible to everyone, especially with more virtual indoor racing, so now everyone can compete at the World Championships level.” It’s fantastic that World Rowing has made such a strong effort to expand the sport of rowing to individuals of all walks of life and from all corners of the globe. As an added bonus, it’s fantastic to see Hassan demonstrating that there are many ways to enjoy rowing.

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