61 Year Old Wins Indoor Rowing Championship, Boston USA & Retains His New World Record (Over 60’s)
Cirencester, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom – 61 year old Brian Bailey who is Goods Out Supervisor for Tindirect in Cirencester has just returned from Boston, USA, with the 2000m World Indoor Rowing Championships under his belt. With 3000 entrants and 11 world class competitors in his category he faced the stiffest competition from Australia, USA and Canada. He ‘romped’ home 130 metres and 26 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor, with a time of 6 minutes 50.9 seconds. Brian says ‘It’s a fantastic feeling to win given the enormity of the occasion.’
Sunday’s world-beating performance is just outside the world record of 6 minutes 44.1 seconds (over 60’s lightweight category), which he set a month ago in Manchester’s Velodrome. That was when he took the world record title from Australian Lyle Parker and broke the previous world record by 2.5 seconds.
Brian wasn’t prepared to take things for granted in the World Championships after setting a new world record and he was concerned the transatlantic flight may affect his race so he spent two days in Boston acclimatising. In the end, it was circumstances beyond everyone’s control that affected race times. Brian comments ‘The race conditions were very difficult. The air was extremely dry inside Boston University’s Agganis Ice Skating Arena and everyone’s performance was affected - but with the World Championships it’s all about winning! Fast times and world records are for days when race conditions are better and you’re not under so much pressure.’
Brian works at Cirencester’s Tindirect Ltd., (part of Global Computer Holdings) which is an international, Business to Business IT hardware solutions provider. In between managing the ‘just-in-time’ despatches of large, refurbished IT equipment, his daily training regime includes using his workplace gym facilities to row 15 kilometres before work and another half an hour rowing at lunchtime.
Tindirect’s Managing Director Rod Haddrell says ‘When Brian got through to the European Championships a few months ago, it occurred to us that whilst he was competing on the world stage, we are also a world class company active in 54 countries. We’re all incredibly proud of him and perhaps his colleagues will stop ribbing him now about training in our company gym because his fitness has totally put us to shame!’
Brian, who lives in Cheltenham has added his latest title of World Champion to a string of other wins:
• Over 60’s World Record Holder; 2000m Indoor Rowing at 6 minutes 44.1 seconds, Manchester Velodrome, UK, on 28th Jan 2007
• European Championships, Amsterdam time of 6 mins 47.5 seconds on16th Dec 2006
• Welsh Open Championships, 6 mins 45.5 (heavyweight category) on 2nd Dec 2006
• British Indoor Rowing Championships (Heavyweight) NEC Birmingham 6 mins 49.2 seconds - finished second on 19th Nov 2006
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