A HIGHLAND rowing club which is home to Rio Olympic hopefuls could lose its vital sporting facilities if the Inverness West Link follows the planned route.
Oarsmen and women from across Scotland use the calm waters of the Caledonian Canal as a training ground all year around.
But a new swing bridge associated with the multimillion-pound Inverness West Link would restrict space close to the club’s boathouse and could prevent them from holding large scale events.
The club has now lodged a formal objection to the road, adding its voice to the hundreds who oppose the plan.
And Scottish Rowing has backed the club’s views, stating the Caledonian Canal at Tomnahurich is “the best rowing water in Scotland”. The Inverness organisation is one of over 450 people and groups which have objected to the proposals for the road that will link the A82 Inverness-Fort William with the city’s Dores Road. The council plan is for a second swing bridge at Tomnahurich, just yards from the rowers’ boathouse.
But the rowing club fears the space taken up by the new swing bridge, and pontoons needed to accommodate waiting boats, will severely restrict its space.
Highland Council said planners had kept the rowing club informed about the plans since the start.
Two successful rowers for Team GB started their careers with Inverness Rowing Club – Imogen Walsh and Alan Sinclair.
Ms Walsh, whose father Paddy is the president of the club, was fourth in the lightweight sculls at the World Rowing Championships in Chungju recently. She was also the reserve for gold medal-winning double sculls crew at the London Olympics. Mr Sinclair also competed in Chungju with the men’s four, who finished fifth overall. He also raced with the same crew at the three world cups this year, winning silver at the Eton Dorney event.
Both now have their eyes on taking part in the next Olympics in Rio in 2016.
Teams from Aberdeen and Glasgow universities, meanwhile, use the waters for training camps and Scottish Rowing carries out trials for the national team on its broad reaches.
Mr Walsh said yesterday: “It is clean, sheltered water all year round. It is regarded as a national asset and one that should be developed. If the road is built, we will keep going and adapt to the conditions – but it will compromise the quality of the rowing. It will create difficulties that do not exist at the moment.”
The club also claims that its own efforts to expand have been hampered for years by uncertainty over the West Link route.
Junior membership increased last year in the wake of the rowers’ success at the London Olympics, with 20 youngsters now training regularly in Inverness. The club hoped to expand the clubhouse and instal electricity, allowing it to provide hot water and showers for the first time.
The timetable of bridge openings would also hamper the club’s activities, which include 100-boat regattas and time trials for rowers bidding to get into national teams.
Scottish Rowing’s chief operating officer Amanda Cobb said: “Not having a current makes it a fairly good long stretch of still, sheltered water. It is definitely an area we see as having potential growth.”
A council spokesman said: “We have done our best to keep the club as closely advised of the plans as we could. We respect their comments.” Planners are now assessing all the technical information on the application and responses from the public and other consultees. A recommendation will be made in due course.