On Wednesday 13th March, Love Rowing were joined by friends, supporters and guests at the fantastic Fortnum and Mason. It was a very special evening with everyone leaving feeling inspired by the social power of rowing and excited ahead of the Olympic and Paralympic Games being held in Paris this summer.

The event special guest was Moe Sbihi. Moe is a three-time Olympian and Olympic medal winner. At the 2012 London Olympics he was in the British crew that won the bronze medal in the men's eight. He won a gold medal in the coxless four at 2016 Rio Olympics and he returned to the eight for the 2020 Tokyo games, again winning bronze. But it wasn't Moe's Olympic stories that inspired the audience at Fortnum and Mason. In conversation with Olympic silver medallist Cath Bishop, Moe talked about how he nearly didn't start rowing, how rowing found him, the life skills rowing teaches, how it feels to prepare for the Olympics and how rowing changed the course of his life. His story resonates with the purpse of Love Rowing, which aims to transform lives through the sport.

Clare Glackin, Co Chair of Love Rowing and Rebecca Gibson, Foundation Director highlighted the mission of Love Rowing and the potential of rowing to support individuals who are more likely to face life and health inequalities including disabled people and young people from lower socio economic backgrounds. A huge thank you to Susannah from East Anglia Youth Rowing, Pete and Kate from the Peterborough City Rowing Club Row the Rhythm project and Laween from the Silverlinings Brain Injury Charity who shared their stories of how rowing is benefitting people's lives. 

During the evening, Love Rowing opened the prospect of donors Adopting a Project. We have 3 amazing projects for individuals to contribute towards - you can donate here https://www.loverowing.org/supportus

• We are seeking £3,500 to tackle health inequalities faced by young people in the middle of Leicester. Funding will support clothing and equipment that currently, many of the young rowers are unable to access, such as warm and waterproof layers for the cooler months, and Cox boxes, and suitable boats to enable more young people access the water safely, including an Octuple.
• £5,000 supports children experiencing child poverty in Lowestoft to access rowing. Your funds will support a new outreach programme in Lowestoft, a free summer taster camp and opportunities to try coastal rowing, and a new junior section of Lowestoft Rowing Club
• We are seeking £100,000 to expand Row the Rhythm and the Silverlinings projects across the UK, enabling people with sight loss and visual impairment or people suffering from the affects of a brain injury to access regular rowing sessions.

If you would like to understand more about how Love Rowing is transforming lives through rowing and make a donation, please take a look at our project impact report  and you can donate directly on the website.