Friday, 29 January 2021
Varese in Italy has been confirmed as the host of the European Olympic and Paralympic Qualification Regatta and European Rowing Championships in April.
The qualifying event for this year s Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo was originally scheduled to take place last year but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This followed the postponement of Tokyo 2020 to 2021 as a result of the global health crisis, with the Olympics now scheduled from July 23 to August 8.
The Paralympics will then follow from August 24 to September 5.
Qualifying remains in Varese and will run from April 5 to 7, with the European Rowing Championships then set for April 9 to 11.
In August, there was cause for celebration following the miraculous rescue of two cousins who spent 15 hours stranded at sea. Ellen Glynn and Sara Feeney got into difficulty after going paddleboarding at Furbo Beach in Co Galway. A major search and rescue operation was launched after the young women failed to return to shore and many feared the worst.
1. Galway ‘miracle’ rescue
The next morning, however, the pair were discovered by local fisherman Patrick Oliver and his son Morgan. Oliver used his fishing experience to predict where the young women might have drifted and located them some 17 miles from where they had last been seen.