Turkey is hoping to land the hosting rights for European age-level rowing championships at the Meriç River (Maritsa) that runs between the country’s northwestern city of Edirne and Greece.
To assess Turkey’s readiness, a World Rowing Federation (FISA) delegation visited the site on Thursday.
This was the last leg of their tour of potential hosts for the U-19 and U-23 European championships in 2024 and 2025. Other interested countries include Germany, the Czech Republic, France, Greece and Italy.
During their visit, FISA board members Nebojsa Jevremovic and Asuncion Perez held a technical meeting with Edirne Gov. H. Kürşat Kırbıyık, Turkish Rowing Federation President Erhan Ertürk and TED Edirne College Rowing Club President Nesim Iba, at the facility overlooking the Meriç River.
The city’s plans for the events were presented to the FISA delegation at the meeting.
Having completed a final technical review, the board will submit its report to FISA and announce the name of the selected tracks.
FISA board member Nebojsa Jevremovic said that the Meriç River needed little work, in terms of courses, to host an international event.
"Nature and water sports go together. Here you have that feature too. Hosting such an event will be very important for Edirne. The track has a high capacity. The event will also be an important step for the development of rowing in Turkey. The same goes for canoeing. If it qualifies as a host, larger events can be held here as well," he said.
Turkish Rowing Federation President Erhan Ertürk said the organizers want to include Turkey as they plan to expand beyond Bulgaria’s Plovdiv.
TED Edirne College Rowing Club President Nesim Iba said they made a good presentation to the technical committee and were optimistic that Edirne will win the hosting rights.
He added that although Edirne was competing with some important countries to host the event, the Meriç River has the historical texture and natural track feature to surpass its rivals.
