#Rower of the Month: Gary O’Donovan is the Afloat Rower of the Month for March. The Skibbereen man had to compete in the lightweight single scull at the Ireland trials after his brother and crewmate, Paul, pulled out ill. Gary set excellent times, showing how much he has improved individually, in addition to being half of the crew of the lightweight double which will compete in international events in Europe in the summer and the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in August.

 Rower of the Month awards: The judging panel is made up of Liam Gorman, rowing correspondent of The Irish Times, and David O'Brien, editor of Afloat magazine. Monthly awards for achievements during the year will appear on afloat.ie and the overall national award will be presented to the person or crew who, in the judges' opinion, achieved the most notable results in, or made the most significant contribution to rowing during 2016. Keep a monthly eye on progress and watch our 2016 champions list grow.