Rockhampton council and Rowing Queensland cancel school championships

Rockhampton council is under fire for its reluctant joint decision to cancel the rowing championships - costing families and businesses thousands of dollars - because the course was destroyed, after the weather sent them up the creek without a paddle.

A Rockhampton Grammar School crew preparing to compete in a previous competition on the Fitzroy River.

Organisers of a major rowing event have been forced to find a new location for the upcoming competition after recent rain washed away the Fitzroy River rowing course.

The regatta was purportedly set to involve 800 competitors and see the Beef Capital host an estimated 3000 people.

Rowing Queensland and Rockhampton Regional Council have agreed the 2024 Higgins Coatings State Schools Championships must be relocated after the recent rainfall and flash flooding.

The Rockhampton region saw its highest August rainfall in 84 years, which resulted in the partial destruction of the Fitzroy River rowing course and some of it washing downstream, with council still continuing to retrieve parts of the course.

Senator Canavan said Maritime Safety Queensland had approved the installation of a replacement course for the event which would have avoided the cancellation had it been organised quickly enough.

Senator Matt Canavan during the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

“I realise that this was a major event but it occurred a full month before the State Championships. It is not clear why a new course could not have been installed in time,” he said.

“Rockhampton businesses will lose thousands of dollars as a result of this cancellation and council should have been doing everything they could to ensure that the event could go ahead, including borrowing courses from other areas.

“Thousands of families will be out of pocket having to change their accommodation on short notice, including Rockhampton families who will now have to travel to for the event.”

Council said potential temporary infrastructure and the logistical requirements to install a makeshift course within the limited timeframe before the event combined with ongoing recovery efforts were considered.

A pair of Stuartholme School rowers head out on to the course during the Queensland Secondary Schools Rowing Championships in Rockhampton.

The championship is planned to be held in Rockhampton next year.

This year’s championship has been relocated to the Queensland State Rowing Centre and will still be held between September 14 and 16.

Senator Canavan used the incident on to take a swipe at council and their care for the course.

“If there is any positive from this debacle maybe it will force the council and river users to come together and work out a plan about how we can better setup rowing facilities for Rockhampton and our region,” he said.

“We need to be taking the management of our world class rowing course on the river more seriously.

“Our river is a great asset for Rockhampton but it’s suffering from neglect.”