Relph sisters building bridges between Para and rowing

“Hang on just a minute, let me put you on speaker, we’re on our way to dinner,” says Monica Relph. She and her younger sister Pamela laugh as they turn on the speaker phone and introduce themselves. They have both finished their training for the day and are heading out to meet some friends for dinner.

 “I first started rowing when I was 17, through a talent ID programme,” Monica explains. “They spotted me in the hallway of my high school and picked me randomly for being a tall kid.” She soon fell in the love with the sport and went on to compete for her university and at the under-23 level where Monica picked up an U23 gold in the British women’s eight It was then that she was introduced to Mary McLachlan, who not only coached the U23 rowers, but also the Para-rowers. McLachlan suggested that Pamela who suffers from debilitating arthritis, come out for a trial. One week later, Monica brought her younger sister Pamela down to the water and the future Paralympian tried rowing for the first time.

“I came quite late into rowing, I was 21 before I even picked up an oar,” Pamela says. “But I knew what I was getting myself in for. I had watched Monica race so many times, so I started off knowing what it was like, what the training was like.” This insider knowledge helped Pamela to quickly make her way into the LTA mixed coxed four and join her sister on the British Rowing Team.

Pamela is currently a member of the undefeated LTA mixed coxed four that won gold at the Paralympic Games and are the reigning World Champions. But she does not let the pressure of being on top affect their training. “Some people talk about racing as another element. I’m in a mind-set where you have to be able to have your best results in a lake in the middle of nowhere, with no one around. When you know you can do that, you know you can race well,” she says.

This competitive attitude is clearly a trait shared by the two sisters. Monica has raced in just about every boat on the water, rowing bow side, stroke side and sculling. “I like them all,” she says. “I just like to go fast in whatever boat I am in, so that’s what I try to do.”

This dynamic duo feel that rowing has helped them to better understand each other. “We have more common ground now, and since we are both training at the same facility, it means we are often together,” says Monica. Pamela quickly jumps in saying, “It has even brought the squads (Para and able-bodied) closer together. We are all training in the same place, but now we have something in common too.”

Not only are the squads closer together off the water, their training programmes are becoming more and more similar. While certain considerations have to be made for the Para-rowing squad, the main difference in training programmes correlates to the difference in length of race (1,000 metres in Para-rowing). The para-rowers place more emphasis on power endurance, with fewer long endurance sessions.  With confirmation that the length of race will remain unchanged through to the 2016 Paralympics, Pamela says, “we will continue training as we are. Training for a 1km race is different than a 2km race.”

Both sisters are looking toward Rio 2016, although their conviction differs slightly. Pamela admits, “we’re always trying to get more rowers involved with Para-rowing, but I’ll be damned if somebody tries to take my seat before Rio.” Monica hesitates before answering, “Rio seems really far away, but I’m sure it will come much faster than I think.” For now they are both focused on their upcoming training sessions.

 “Just one last thing, watch out for Monica and Pamela in a pair. I’ve just got to convince Pamela, but I think our parents are really looking forward to watching us row together some day,” Monica adds.