Alumni row to world record, Olympic berth
McMaster alumni Doug Csima and Jeremiah Brown have qualified for the Summer Olympics.
The pair are members of Canada’s men’s eight rowing team, which set a world record at a World Cup meet in Lucerne Switzerland, May 25.
The Canadians won their 2,000-metre semi-final heat in 5:19.35 minutes, breaking the previous world’s best of 5:19.85 set at the 2004 Athens Olympics by the US team.
The Canadian men’s eight team won the last gold medal at the 2008 Games in Beijing.
Csima, originally from Oakville, was a member of McMaster’s varsity rowing crew from 2003 to 2007. He has been a top performer at Hamiton’s Leander Boat Club and a member of the national rowing team since 2008. He graduated with a degree in nursing from McMaster.
Brown, a commerce alumnus from Cobourg, Ont., was an offensive tackle with the Marauders football team from 2004 to 2007. He began rowing in 2008, and joined the Canadian men’s eight team in 2011.
The 2012 Summer Olympic Games will take place July 27 to August 12 in London, UK.
