Solo Rower Hennigan Holds Off Three-Man Crew

27th January 2017

Gavan Hennigan

#Rowing: Solo oarsman Gavan Hennigan and the three-man American Oarsmen are locked in a stirring battle for the lead in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge. With two four-men crews already finished, the Irishman, who took over in third early on, holds the top spot on the water in the 12-boat race. Crew boats made more progress in the past week as Hennigan encountered tricky conditions. American Oarsmen, who can row over the full day while Hennigan must take some rest, had looked set to reel him in on Thursday. However, Hennigan has upped his mileage to an impressive 62 nautical miles (115 kilometres) per day, exactly matching American Oarsmen. With about a week’s rowing left to the finish in Antigua, Hennigan’s lead is 12 nautical miles (22 km).

“I’m focused on controlling the controllables,” Hennigan said. “I know about American Oarsmen, but I can’t do anything about what they’re doing. I can only focus on rowing my boat and pushing myself to the limit to get to Antigua as fast as I possibly can.”

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About The Author

Liam Gorman

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Liam Gorman is a writer and reporter. He is the co-author of Little Lady, One Man, Big Ocean, published in the United States and Canada as Crossing the Swell. He is the rowing correspondent of the Irish Times.

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