John XXIII Rowing Club 

Dear Rowing Families

It’s always great to race in the first regatta and see how you go against the competition, and our girls’ squad did just that on the weekend. We had a number of crews on the water for their first-ever race, with one student saying, 'This is nothing like training'. Racing against other schools is certainly a different experience and shows our rowers the level that they need to train at to be competitive against other crews. 

From here, the girls have another regatta in two weeks. The boys have to wait a little longer for All Schools Regatta #1 on 14 June. A message will go out about regatta availability next week, so coaches can start putting crew combinations together. 

The regatta that John XXIII College hosts will also be held during this Term on 6 June, and we will commence planning and volunteer recruitment soon. This information will mainly be through the parent WhatsApp groups, so please keep an eye out for those. It’s a great day and fundraising activity for the club. 

Training days – due to the IGSSA regatta calendar and boat loading, our calendar has been impacted for the Year 9’s and 10’s with training no longer on alternate weeks for the boys and girls. Please refer to the calendar on STACK in the ‘Documents’ section for your Friday training days.

With all that activity, please ensure you stay as healthy as can be. Get as much sleep as possible, stay hydrated, eat well and keep up the hand hygiene. 

Remember, if you can’t make a session, please email Claire.woolfitt@johnxxiii.edu.au, or jimmy.oregan@johnxxiii.edu.au for the Girls Squad or lauren.strong@johnxxiii.edu.au for the Boys Squad. Starting this week, an email will be sent to parents of rowers who did not attend the session without explanation. 

IGSSA Regatta

The second regatta of the IGSSA season is on Saturday, 16 May. Please make sure your parents have completed your Consent to Go. 

Regattas generally run until 12pm, followed by boat unloading until approximately 2pm. 

Regattas are held at Champion Lakes Regatta Centre, Henley Drive, Champion Lakes. 

Year 8 Learn to Row 

The Year 8 Learn to Row program commenced with rowing sessions this week. 

Students have participated in one water session at our Canning Bridge boatshed. Land training will start next week at school from 3:30pm to 4:30pm. Girls are on Monday and Boys on Thursday. Please wear your PE uniform. 

Year 8s row in their PE uniform and there is no need for them to purchase any rowing uniform. 

Please contact me at: claire.woolfitt@johnxxiii.edu.au if you have any queries. 

The STACK group will be made next week. 

Uniforms

The new zootsuit is now in stock at the Uniform Shop. There is also a training top that can be worn under the zootsuit, and a ¼-zip fleece. The only compulsory item is the Zootsuit for racing at regattas.  There is a stock of the old zootsuits which can be worn for training. 

Stack Team App

This App is one of our main avenues for communication with rowers and their parents. Please download the ‘Stack Team App’ on your phone, as this is the central place for training schedules, training updates, access to the rowing handbook, to name a few. It is important that all rowers and parents have access.

To get this app please go to the App Store or Google Play and download the Stack Team App onto your mobile device, then follow these simple steps:

• Sign-up to Stack Team App. You’ll be sent an email to confirm your registration.
• Log-in and search for JTCRC, then request to become a member.

Buses

• Pick up: 5:05am at College Bus shelter
• Return: 7:30am from Boatshed

2026 Rowing Club Registrations are open for Years 9 to 12 

It's never too late to register; the John XXIII Rowing Club welcomes existing and new members for our 2026 season.

Registrations are still open. Please complete the online Registration form by clicking on the link: JTC Rowing Registration for 2026 – Fill out form

Those who have not rowed before, or who would like to be a coxswain and represent the College, are also encouraged to join. 

 2026 (Term 2) Rowing Training Schedule  

Key Rowing Events 2026

Absent from training procedure 

Asthma and Allergies

All rowers with asthma or allergies, please remember to bring your asthma puffers, EpiPens, or required medication to all sessions. 

Claire Woolfitt

John XXIII Rowing Coordinator