Seán Joseph Drea (born 3 March 1947[2]) is a former Olympic rower and world record holder from Ireland, specialising in the single scull. He won the Diamond Challenge Sculls (the premier singles sculls event) three years in a row at the Henley Royal Regatta, where he set the course record, and was the first Irish rower to win a World Championship medal securing silver in the 1975 World Championships.[1][3]
 Drea with his 1976 Holland Beker trophy at Bosbaan | |||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 2 March 1947 Bagnalstown, Ireland[1] | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 98 kg (216 lb) | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||
| Sport | Rowing | ||||||||||||||
| Club | Neptune Rowing Club, Dublin | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
editDrea lives in Greystones,[4] and is originally from Bagenalstown, County Carlow. He tried many sports before joining Neptune Rowing Club after moving to Dublin to work[4] in advertising. He later moved to Philadelphia, where he attended St. Joseph's University on a sports scholarship and also rowed for Vesper Boat Club. He lost to Aleksandr Timoshinin in the final of the 1972 Diamond Sculls when the steering fin broke off his boat.[5] At the 1972 Olympics, he came seventh.[2][6] In 1974, he won the U.S. national championships,[7] and was the favorite for the World Championships in Rotsee;[8] however he withdrew for an emergency kidney stone removal.[6][9][10] At the 1975 World Championships, he finished second to Peter-Michael Kolbe.[9] At the 1976 Olympics, he broke the 2000 m world record in the semi-final with a time of 6:52.46.[2][6] However, he finished fourth in the final after a poor third quarter.[2][6]
Drea spent years in Philadelphia as a coach for the US national team,[11] Fairmount Rowing Association, La Salle University and subsequently the Irish National team. He also rowed in the Head of the River Race in 1997 with a veteran Schuylkill Navy crew.[12] Today, Drea lives in Greystones, County Wicklow, Ireland and runs an organic farming business.
Sean's son Jack Drea rowed for Oxford Brookes University[13] and won the Temple Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta in 2006 and competed in the Ladies Challenge Plate in a Oxford Brookes & Oxford University composite in 2007. Jack also represented Ireland in rowing.
Sean’s eldest son David Drea rowed for Trinity College Dublin.
Record
edit| Year | Event | Place | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Henley | QF | [14] |
| 1970 | Worlds | 12 | [15] |
| 1972 | Henley | 2 | [5] |
| 1972 | Olympics | 7 | [2] |
| 1973 | Henley | 1 | [16] |
| 1974 | Henley | 1 | [16] |
| 1975 | Henley | 1 | [16] |
| 1975 | Worlds | 2 | [9] |
| 1976 | Olympics | 4 | [2] |
References
edit
- ^ a b Sean DREA at World Rowing
- ^ a b c d e f Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Seán Drea". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 23 February 2010.
- ^ "Rudern – Weltmeisterschaften. Einer – Herren" [Rowing – World Championships. One – Men]. Sport-Komplett.de (in German). Archived from the original on 6 January 2015.
- ^ a b "Sean Drea calls on Carlow stars to believe". Carlow Nationalist. 11 February 2009. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
- ^ a b "Harvard Lightweight Crew and Kent Eight Capture Cups at Henley Regatta; Drea is defeated in Diamond Sculls". New York Times. 2 July 1972. p. S5. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
- ^ a b c d Watterson, Johnny (14 August 2000). "Olympic Evolution: Number 4 – Rowing". The Irish Times. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
- ^ "A Roundup Of The Week Aug. 12–18". Sports Illustrated. 26 August 1974. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011.
- ^ "A Roundup Of The Week Sept. 2–8". Sports Illustrated. 16 September 1975. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012.
- ^ a b c "...but Not In Nottingham". Sports Illustrated. 8 September 1975. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012.
- ^ "Surgery for Drea". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. 9 September 1974. p. 25. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
- ^ Silverberg, Lee (19 May 2008). "A Very Brief History of the Fairmount Rowing Association". Fairmount Rowing Association. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
- ^ Matheson, Hugh (22 March 1997). "Rowing: Redgrave and Pinsent pair up". The Independent. London. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
- ^ Dodd, Christopher (1 July 2004). "Rowing: Brookes boat beats Dublin as wind takes toll on crews". The Independent. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
- ^ "Penn, Dartmouth lose their races; English Crews Triumph in Grand Challenge Event Arlett Bows in Sculling". New York Times. 3 July 1970. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
- ^ "World Rowing". New York Times. 6 September 1970. p. 121 Sports. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
- ^ a b c Hildes-Heim, Norman (31 August 1975). "East German Oarsmen Capture 5 of 8 World Titles at Regatta". New York Times. p. 168. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
...Diamond sculls at the Henley Royal Regatta in July which Drea won for the third consecutive time