Bios - National Team Coaches

London Training Centre - women's programs	Victoria Training Centre - men's programs
Carsten Hassing	Mike Spracklen
Al Morrow	Terry Paul
Michelle Darvill	Howie Campbell

 

Peter Cookson - High Performance Director

Originally from St. Catharines, Ont., Peter Cookson became RCA's High Performance Director in early 2009.  He has more than 30 years of involvement with the sport of rowing at national and international levels.

Cookson, who coached South Africa’s women’s single sculler at the 2008 Olympics, began his coaching career in Canada in 1985 and was a leading coach for several prominent Canadian university programs - University of British Columbia, University of Western Ontario and the University of Toronto.  He has since coached in the UK, South Africa and Zimbabwe, and has been involved with the FISA (the international rowing federation) Development program in Africa. 

Cookson, a University of Western Ontario graduate, has also worked in coaching education for many years and produced the 2005 DVD called Effective Sculling Technique.

 

Mike Spracklen - Centre Lead and National Heavyweight Men’s Coach

Mike Spracklen, who led the 2008 Canadian men's eight to a gold medal in Beijing, has coached at the national level in Canada, the U.S. and his native Great Britain. He has led the Canadian men's eight to wins at the World Championships (2002, 2003 and 2007) and was named 2002 FISA Coach of the Year.

In the early 1990s, he also coached the Canadian men's eight to a gold at the 1992 Olympics and was Silken Laumann's coach for both the 1992 and the 1996 Olympics. In 2000, he served as chief coach (women) in Great Britain - coaching the women's quad to a silver in Sydney.

Spracklen, who was named British Columbia Coach of the Year for 2007, is based in Victoria.

Carsten Hassing - Centre Lead and National Heavyweight Women’s Coach

Carsten Hassing joined the RCA women's program in early 2006 - leading the Canadian women's pair to a gold medal at the World Championships in England that same year. 

Before coming to Canada, he worked for the Danish Rowing Federation for three Olympic cycles, qualifying crews for the finals in each Games, and he coached nine world-level medalling crews for Denmark since 1993. From 2000 to 2005, he worked with Bent Jensen in the successful lightweight men's program in Denmark, and before that he assisted in coaching women's crews.

Hassing, who coached the Canadian heavyweight women at the 2008 Beijing Games, is based at the London Training Centre.

 

Al Morrow - National Lightweight Women and Development Coach

For many years, Hamilton, Ontario native, Al Morrow, has played a key role in the success of Canada's women's rowing program - coaching World and Olympic medallists including Marnie McBean, Kathleen Heddle, Emma Robinson, Alison Korn, Lesley Thompson and many other talented women.

In 1999, the London, Ontario-based coach was recognized by the world rowing federation (FISA) as Coach of the Year.  He was  inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.

Morrow is now concentrating on the development of the lightweight women's program. In 2008, Morrow coached the lightweight women's double that picked up an Olympic bronze medal in China.

 

 

Terry Paul - National Men's Development Coach and Senior Men's Heavyweight Coach

As a cox for the 1992 men's eight, Terry Paul helped the crew bring home gold for Canada from the Barcelona Games. Since then, he has gained much experience as a coach in Canada with the men's program and with the Swiss National Team.

Terry coached the 2002 World Cup gold medallist lightweight men's four, and women's double, and has been in charge of the Under-23 and non-Olympic programs. In 2006, he coached the Under-23 men's eight to a gold medal and the senior coxed four to a silver medal at the World Championships.

In 2008, Terry coached the men's pair to Olympic Silver in Beijing.

 

 

Howard Campbell - National Lightweight Men’s Coach

Howie is a Level 4 coach and a graduate of the National Coaching Institute who has more than 20 years of professional coaching experience. He has successfully developed athletes at all levels of participation, including the Senior World Championships, Under 23 World Championships and Pan American Games.

Howie was the Head Men’s Rowing Coach at the University of Victoria from 1990 to 2008, and he was an assistant to Bent Jensen at the 2008 Olympic Games.

 

 

 

Michelle Darvill - National Women's Development Coordinator

Olympian Michelle Darvill competed for Canada and Germany - winning World Championship gold in the LW 1x, LW2x and LW4x.

She has been involved in coaching since 1992 at the university, club and international levels. Most recently, she working as an assistant coach with the Women's National Team, and 2007 Pan American Games women's team coach.

 

 

Please see notice regarding the passing of Bent Jensen

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