CampaignNumberOne
Rowing Australia announces John Keogh as Women’s Head Coach
 

Rowing Australia today announced John Keogh as its new Women’s Head Coach. This follows the announcement earlier this week of Ian Wright as the new Men’s Head Coach. Keogh and Wright form part of Australia’s new look High Performance leadership team, with the duo set to work alongside Performance Director Bernard Savage and Deputy Performance Director Jaime Fernandez.
 
Keogh will join Rowing Australia on 17 October 2016 and be based at the soon to be announced Women’s National Training Centre. Providing national technical leadership of the women’s rowing program, he will oversee the Women’s Senior and Assistant Coaches and drive the ongoing development of Australia’s elite female rowers. Keogh, like Wright, will work with Performance Director Bernard Savage, to make the coaching appointments for his program as soon as possible.
 
Australian-born Keogh joins RA with extensive specialist roles leading female programs as well as a number of podium successes, particular the in the coxed eight boat class.
 
Keogh has led the women’s program at Rowing Canada for the past six years, holding the roles of Women’s Performance Director and Senior Women’s Coach. During this time with Canada the country’s female rowers have won multiple medals, with the Lightweight Women’s Double Sculls winning silver at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, the Women’s Eight winning silver at London 2012, as well as winning medals at consecutive World Rowing Championships (2010, 2011, 2013, 2014 and 2015).
 
Prior to his role with Rowing Canada, Keogh was a High Performance Coach at leading rowing nation Great Britain where he coached crews at various World Rowing Championships and the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Keogh coached Great Britain’s Women’s Eight to a bronze medal at the 2007 World Championships.
 
Rowing Australia Chief Executive Officer Michael Scott commented: “It is fantastic to be able to announce another new coaching appointment this week and especially one that sees John return back to Australia to share his wealth of female rowing coaching knowledge and expertise”.
 
“John has many years of international experience and a proven track record of securing medals with his female rowing crews, so we are looking forward to him leading our new women’s national program.”
 
Responding to the announcement of his appointment, Keogh said: “I am excited to be returning to Australia to lead the Women’s National Training Centre. I am looking forward to working with Australia’s elite female athletes, as well as the entire staff and coaching group as we work towards the common goal of being the world’s top rowing nation.
 
“I have been fortunate for the last 10 years to work overseas in successful programs, alongside some of the leading coaches from around the world, and I look forward to bringing my knowledge to this exciting new direction for RA.”
 
Raised in Tasmania, Keogh represented Australia at two World Rowing Championships and is McVilly-Pearce pin number 457. He also held the position of Rowing Master at Brisbane Boys College for a period of time and worked as a State and club coach in Tasmania. 
 
Rowing Australia launched CampaignNumberOne prior to the Rio Olympic Games, putting the sport ahead of the game from a planning perspective leading into Tokyo.  The new High Performance Plan includes the centralisation of its High Performance programs as well as the development of a bespoke state based pathways program that develops a pipeline of talent into the High Performance Centres.

-ENDS-

 
For more information, please contact:
Lucy Benjamin
Rowing Australia – Media and Communications Manager
Mob: +61 457 744 434
Email: lbenjamin@rowingaustralia.com.au