By Jerram Watts
The dominance of the New Zealand rowers at the London Olympics has made them the toast of Kiwi sport.
They’ve also bolstered interest in the sport back in New Zealand, and rowing clubs expect numbers to swell further over the next few weeks.
Thirteen-year-old Rory Burke and 16-year-old Hayden Ryan were out in a skiff for the first time today.
The exploits of the Kiwis in London prompting them to get their feet wet
“It helps that the New Zealand rowers are doing really well at the Olympics, so that kind of helped push me into it,” says Ryan.
Wellington Rowing Club president Barry Sayer says there are many more people becoming interested in the sport.
“There's a lot of people poking their nose in the shed today, it's a beautiful day and out on the harbour people are stopping to look at the rowing skiffs.”
The Wellington Rowing Club usually gets one or two enquiries a week - but club captain Joe O’Neill says that as the medals come in, that number has spiked.
“I've noticed literally in the last two weeks I've had 10 to 15 emails from kids who are keen to join.”
Here's hoping the interest means more Olympic gold in years to come
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