FORT WAYNE, Ind. (ADAMS) – The University of Saint Francis announces the formation of the city’s first collegiate crew program.
USF Athletics will partner with Fort Wayne-based Glorious Gate (G2) Rowing to launch the program. USF will field men’s and women’s crew teams, informally referred to as “rowing,” beginning this fall. Charlie Clark will serve as coach.
“After one conversation with G2 Rowing, Charlie Clark and their vision for rowing in the city of Fort Wayne, we knew we wanted to be a part of it,” USF Athletic Director Mike McCaffrey said. “If it wasn’t for the expertise of G2, the foundation they already have in the city, and the future partnership with the Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation Department at Shoaff Park, we would not have been able to pull the trigger this quickly.”
G2 Rowing will serve as the training partner of the teams and will provide equipment for team members to train year-round. The teams will practice and compete at Shoaff Park. G2 Rowing continues to work on plans for constructing a permanent boathouse, in conjunction with Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation, at the park’s boat ramp entrance.
Clark, a board member of G2 and the director of the Summit City Sprints race, was a championship high school oarsman for famed United States Rowing Hall of Fame coach Jim Barker at Undine Barge Club at fabled Philadelphia’s Boathouse Row. As a junior, he won City, Stotesbury Cup, and Schoolboy national championships and was a member of the U.S. junior national quad. Clark rowed for Hall of Fame coaches Bill Sanford and Drew Harrison at Syracuse University during their championship years where his crews won silver and bronze medals in his four years.
The USF Crew team is open to all current and incoming USF students. Anyone interested in joining the team for the 2021-22 season should contact Coach Charlie Clark at cclark@sf.edu.
