Myanmar's national coach, Borix Polyakov (L) of Russia, talks to athletes from the canoe and kayak team during a training session at Inya Lake, Yangon, on July 16. Pic: Aung Tun Win

THE Myanmar Rowing and Canoeing Federation (MRCF) is sending two national teams to Germany to compete next month in international regattas there.

“One rowing team will compete in Munich, in Germany, in the FISA World Rowing Senior Championships.

“The other team, for canoeing and kayaking, will go to Duisburg in Germany to participate in the International Canoe Federation’s 36th (Flatwater Racing) World Championships,” MRCF secretary U Pe Win said last week.

“The team for the Munich regatta will leave on July 24. They will practise from July 26 to August 25 for the regatta, which runs from August 26 to September 2.
“The team for Duisburg will leave on August 1” for the August 8-12 event, he added.

The two teams of four are coached by Boris Polyakov, who said Myanmar would be facing vastly more experienced adversaries in Germany.

“The Myanmar team’s canoe and kayak experience is young. Some countries have experience of many decades but Myanmar only has 17 years of experience,” the 70-year-old Russian said.

“The Myanmar team has enough strength and enthusiasm but they lack experience.

“Although they are first or second by ASEAN standards, at the Asia standard they are ranked sixth or seventh,” he said.

In Germany, the teams will be mixing it with the world’s best rowers, canoeists and kayakers. The World Rowing Championships, organised by the 112-year-old FISA (International Federation of Rowing Association), is the year’s premier international rowing event and attracts more than 1000 competitors from five continents and is watched by millions of TV viewers.

The MRCF is doubtful of any podium finishes and is viewing the competitions in Germany as valuable experience for the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Bangkok this December.

The federation will also get the chance to check out the form of regional rivals Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, who are also sending squads to Germany.

Still, Polyakov said Myanmar faced equipment concerns that made mounting a serious challenge difficult.

“What we need is new boats,” Polyakov said in reference to the MRCF’s outdated kayaks and canoes. “New boats are more modern and narrower than the older boats.”

He added, however, participating in Germany was already a significant expense for the federation.

U Pe Win said the Ministry of Sports and the MRCF had been trying to secure new boats, but doing so meant competitors would need to re-learn methods that were better-suited to new models.

“I would need to teach them new techniques, the new speed of the boats,” Polyakov said. “In order to do so, I need two months.”

Polyakov, who has 47 years’ experience coaching in the USSR, Pakistan, South Korea, mainland China, Iran, Taiwan and Singapore, joined the Myanmar Rowing and Canoeing Federation this year on a one-year contract that expires after the SEA Games.

His appointment followed an executive overhaul of the MRCF in 2006 that was ordered by the government to help the federation secure more international silverware.

The national rowing team will follow the world championships with the 2007 Senior and Junior Asian Championships in South Korea in October.