The collaboration aims to establish the GB Olympic beach sprint programme and bring home medals for Great Britain.
Beach sprint is a fast-paced sports discipline combining rowing and sprinting.
Athletes start the race with a sprint on the beach, row around a buoy course and finish with another sprint to the beach finish line.
The GB beach sprint team won five medals at the 2022 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals in Wales.
BU athletes to train for LA 2028 in world-class beach rowing setup (Image: BU) The decision to collaborate with Bournemouth University (BU) was based on the ideal location that Bournemouth and the surrounding area offers, including its superb beaches and the proximity to the sports facilities that SportBU can offer visiting athletes and local talent.
Martin Wells, high performance manager, said: “This will be a superb opportunity for British Rowing and beach sprint athletes to take advantage of our high-performance sports laboratory facilities that are conveniently located five minutes from Bournemouth beaches.
“Having an Olympic environment on campus and in the area will help inspire the next generation of young athletes and sports students.”
BU will also be developing its own beach sprint programme, led by beach sprint and rowing coach, Kath Coleman-Jones.
She will be tasked with identifying talent within the area and recruiting BU students who show Olympic promise in this discipline over the coming years.
Student athletes will get the chance to train and compete in the GB beach sprint performance development academy (PDA) and work alongside other GB Olympic coaches and athletes.
Kath said: “BU and British Rowing’s collaboration offers a unique coastal rowing community for training and development.
“Bournemouth’s exceptional beaches, a stone’s throw from the BU’s great facilities, will allow world-class athletes and coaches the best training opportunities to develop their rowing skills in the beach sprint discipline.”
Olympic head coach for beach sprints, Tom Pattichis from British Rowing, will be supporting BU athletes identified as having GB potential in the PDA.
Tom said: “Bournemouth and the surrounding area provides a perfect environment for developing rowers in the Olympic beach sprint format.”