Competitive rowing: The Bled phenomenon

The image of Bled – a peaceful Alpine lake, a small island with a church, and a castle perched atop a 50-metre cliff – is reminiscent of a stunning landscape painting. Its striking beauty, often the source of poetic inspiration, has turned Bled into a tourism icon. It has indeed become one of the most recognizable and visited places in Slovenia, popular among Slovenes and foreigners alike.

Bled is a very lively town that is very proud of its rich culture and history. In 2004, the town of Bled celebrated its one thousandth anniversary, making it one of the oldest and most cherished settlements in Slovenia. This year Bled will honour and celebrate another anniversary – one hundred years of competitive rowing – which has contributed in recent decades to Bled’s distinction and reputation as a rowing phenomenon on the world stage. The planned centenary anniversary and jubilee will serve to highlight the significant role competitive rowing has played in forming Bled’s identity as a legitimate sporting town. It is quite astonishing that a community of approximately ten thousand people has cultivated so many successful athletes who have gone on to win Olympic and World Championship rowing medals. This remarkable achievement for such a small community is almost unheard of in the sporting world, with perhaps a few exceptions in Norway in the traditional skiing disciplines.

Bled’s rise to rowing supremacy began over a century ago. The first rowers, who took to the peaceful waters of lake Bled, were most likely rich tourists from Austria (Slovenia was at that time still a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire). These tourists were regular visitors to Bled who, by organizing a few regattas between 1905 and 1910, enlivened the social lives of people on the lake and in the town, which at that time was still only a health resort. The impending first World War interrupted the rowing tradition that had become such an integral part of life in Bled. It wasn’t until 1930 that this tradition was restored with competitions such as the State championship of the former Kingdom of Yugoslavia. This time around the locals were included in organizing and running the rowing competitions. With the endorsement of Queen Mary, numerous distinguished business and political personalities from Ljubljana joined the honorary committee, and the organization was successfully taken over by Bled locals, with the help of experienced colleagues from places with strong rowing traditions (especially the Dalmatians). The State championship at Bled became a great social event, which was also widely covered in national newspapers.

As the rowing tradition in Bled took on greater significance, locals eventually established the Bled rowing club in 1949, which quickly became an important meeting place for many important figures in and around Bled. Despite a shortage of funds and boats, female and male crews practiced in the club from the very beginning. Women, in particular, attained great results during the club’s first few years in existence. The shortage of expert coaches was compensated for in part by guest experts from Belgrade and Dalmatia, but the club began to produce its own generation of coaches as well. In 1960, a young coach by the name of Peter Klavora put together an elite eight, which won a competition and turned the rowing community on its head. The previously invincible rowers from Dalmatia were no longer invincible, and the Bled rowing club quickly gained a reputation as the strongest rowing club in Yugoslavia. It was a classic case of David versus Goliath. Although visibly smaller in size and stature than the majority of their competitors, Bled rowers achieved success by displaying an exceptional rowing technique and a supreme level of physical fitness. Now that the doors to the European and World Championships had finally opened, Bled rowers stepped through and made their presence felt. At the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 1964, the Bled Eight narrowly missed an Olympic bronze medal by placing fourth; but the same Eight achieved some success between 1963 and 1966 by placing third at the European Championships in Amsterdam and winning many international regattas throughout Europe, including  at the renowned Rotsee  Regatta in Lucerne.

Despite occasional crises over the years, rowing generations have emerged in Bled ever since, and Bled’s rowers have won medals regularly at the highest levels of competition. Although the Bled rowing club has not been able to repeat the successes of the Eights in competition, since 1989 Bled sportsmen have brought home the following medals: 17 from the World Youth Championships (7 of which were gold), 12 from the World Rowing Championships, and 5 from the Olympic Games. In 1995, Iztok Čop became the world singles champion, and four years later, with his partner Luka Špik, won the World Championships in the double sculls. However, the greatest success came when Iztok Čop and Luka Špik won an Olympic gold medal in Sydney in 2000, and an Olympic silver medal in Athens four years later.

These successes can be attributed in large part to two men – Miloš Janša and Stanko Slivnik (both former Bled rowers) – who fell in love with rowing and perfected an extraordinary rowing technique. The Bled rowing club has grown in quality and numbers over the years, and currently has over 60 rowers competing in various categories. A discussion about the history of the Bled rowing club cannot be complete without mentioning former president Božo Benedik – an outstanding organizer and event chronicler in his day – who can be credited with really creating the Bled rowing phenomenon through his writing.

The many outstanding competitive achievements of Bled rowers have been accompanied by excellent organizational achievements as well. In the second half of the 20^th century, Bled developed into a bona fide rowing mecca, and is perhaps just a step behind Lucerne in Switzerland. Since countless rowing competitions are held and organized in Bled, only the most important ones will be mentioned here. Soon after establishing the club, Bled hosted the European championships in 1956. Since then, Bled has hosted the World Rowing Championships three times: 1966, 1979, and 1989. In 2005, both the international regatta in June – an annual event of FISA, the International Rowing Association – and the first spring regatta, which takes place at the beginning of May and usually opens the rowing season, are celebrating their 50^th anniversaries in Bled. Bled has established itself as a respected and renowned rowing centre by hosting an incredible list of events, which bodes well for its chances of hosting similar world-class rowing events in the future.

The fact that Bled has emerged as one of the small wonders of the rowing world, can be attributed largely to good fortune. Lake Bled stretches 2,200 metres with a stunning backdrop of forested hills and unparalleled natural beauty. The lake’s ideal length allows fast boats to stop easily after crossing the finish line, while the surrounding hills protect the course from strong winds, which on most rowing courses can wreak havoc on the boats and competitors. Most rowers would agree that it is much more pleasant and interesting to row on a beautiful natural lake than on artificial man-made rowing courses where the surroundings are dull and the winds unpleasant. The magnificent setting aside, what also makes rowing in Bled so unique is the close proximity to the town itself – events take place within a stone’s throw of where the rowers live and socialize.

So how will Bled celebrate one hundred years? At the beginning of April, a new boathouse/starting facility was completed at the start of the regatta course at the base of the prominent Park Hotel. The rowing centre, which is beginning to show its age, will greet the anniversary with a new and fresh interior and exterior appearance. If all goes as planned, a renovated boathouse (its roof has already been fixed) will also house a new boat, maybe an eight, to inspire a new generation of young rowers. A park dedicated to Bled Olympic rowing participants is also being planned alongside the existing rowing centre, which would serve as a tribute to all past and present Bled rowing participants in the Olympic Games (currently 21).

Additionally, a festive celebration is being organized in September, which will host some of the most important and notable individuals in the country. Most attention will be given to the present generation of Bled rowers. Along with the sport minister Milan Zver and the management of the Slovene Olympic Committee and its president, Janez Kocjančič, the President of the International Olympic Committee, Mr. Rogue, is also expected to attend. The event will be televised by national broadcasters, which will also prepare a special documentary about the centenary anniversary. The following day the renovated rowing centre will be the setting for a mass celebration, where visitors will have the opportunity to sit in a boat and try to row in the craft alone. This should enlighten them to the fact that miracles only happen through hard work!