Monday 29th November 2004, London
Double Olympic champion James Cracknell today announced his retirement from rowing - but on a temporary basis. He started the invitation-only press conference on Monday morning with a quip that retiring Olympians are like buses - just when you've given up all hope, several come along at once. This was a sly thunder-stealing reference to Matt Pinsent's own press conference tomorrow morning, at which he is widely expected to quit the athletic side of the sport for good. Both oarsmen have become creatively adept at avoiding answering the one question everyone has put to them in the last few months.
Carefully thanking everyone who had contributed to his success - including baby son Croyde for being such a reliable sleeper - Cracknell explained his reasons for taking a break from rowing. The lure of less than five hours a day training, lie-ins, real family holidays, being able to start his media career properly without Jürgen's disapproval over his shoulder, and the chance to do something new, are all important to him. But the over-riding factor is that, right now, he knows he doesn't want it enough.
"I've obviously given my future a lot of thought, and the decision about what to do was not an easy one. I've always been self-motivated, and attacked training with hunger and determination to make the best use of my ability. At the moment that hunger is not there, and I know that for me to be successful, I need to train with the intensity that gives me. You can gain inspiration and motivation from people you train with, but in the middle of winter, you are the one that has to get out on the water and put the hard miles in. I have decided, as a couple of the papers have guessed, to take a year out from competitive rowing, with a view to stepping back into the Olympic programme next winter. Obviously I will have to fight my way back into the squad, but part of the attraction may well be having to prove myself all over again. My major aim for the spring is the London Marathon, which I am going to try and run in under three hours, and in the summer I'll do the London Triathlon before taking a view on rowing again."
So there you have it, a year off the hard stuff, going semi-cold-turkey on the sport while he fronts up ITV's coverage of the Boat Race, keeps his heart, lungs and muscles in good shape with other sports, and has a bit of a life for a change. He is almost certainly right that the only way to whet his appetite for the Beijing struggle is to make things tougher for himself on the water, while taking a break from what has been a gruelling fifteen-year treadmill since he made his first top-class international appearance at the 1989 Junior Worlds. Four years seems such a long time now, but will be noticeably shorter in 12 months time, while the tasty chance to win medals in front of a home crowd in 2006 would leave him with just two years 'hard labour' to do before the Chinese Olympics of 2008. As long as it all goes well, of course. Joking about being able to go ski-ing, he pointed out that he will probably go and break his leg now, since it no longer matters to the squad doctors, and be unable to run the Marathon after all. Luck allowing, Plan A is definitely to take just the single year off. A telltale comment, however, suggests he is still keeping his options open. "When I've watched the World Championships in Japan, if I'm sitting there thinking 'I'm really pleased they won' then I probably won't come back, if I'm wishing I was there, I probably will." (Whoever 'they' are, and assuming 'they' win, of course - ed.)
Actually of course he's unlikely to escape sitting on the bank as the squad compete without him next summer, since at least one broadcasting bunch will try and haul him out to Gifu to commentate or present their coverage. If Steve Redgrave's experience is anything to go by, it's even harder watching the boats flying down the course from a few metres away, and seeing your erstwhile team-mates being grilled by the press and (ideally) accepting medals. James is jealous of the 2005 Worlds venue - "I've never raced in Japan" and clearly looking forward to hopefully competing at Eton in 2006, when he confidently expects "the biggest crowds ever to attend a World Champs" (so get your holiday plans sorted now, guys). In fact it could be a year of seeing things from other perspectives: running the Marathon after three years of handing out Lucozade at the 23-mile mark; trying different sports; commentating on the Boat Race rather than sitting in a boat, and (probably hardest) watching the May 2005 World Cup raced on home water, from the bank. There will be no coaching, he says, other than helping out with the development group at Leander, though he pointed out the likes of Tim Foster have "a far better mental makeup" (ie more patience) for that particular task.
Part of Cracknell's ability to make this decision now has been the lack of pressure from others. One particular culprit in the past has been Jürgen Grobler, and it will not surprise rowing spectators to discover how strong and early a hand he had in creating the post-Redgrave set-up. "When I left Sydney (2000), at the airport, Jürgen told me that I was going to do a pair with Matthew and I should swap sides", said James. "So before I even left Australia he'd decided what I was going to do for the next four years. So the first thing I did (this time) was make sure I didn't fly home with him from Greece..." At the moment Jürgen's official deadline for when Crackers could come back to the squad is actually April 2005, but that may be hardened up now the option of a year off has crystallised into reality. And Beverley was happy for James to take any decision he liked, although she's not sure the 7-day-a-week media schedule currently being endured is much better than rowing-training.
The other big issue settled today was that if/when he comes back to rowing, it will definitely be as a stroke-sider. Cracknell has never felt entirely comfortable on bow-side, despite a good deal of hard work to acclimatise quickly, and it is the loss of instinct when under intense pressure that he regrets the most about the swap (and which could have been contributory to the poor 2003 season the pair had). With Grobler's backing, a returning Cracknell will be 100% back to port-sider: a fact which may blight the number of Christmas cards he receives this year....
The acknowledgement list was lengthy, but two of Crackers' special mentions deserve greater publicity because he clearly wanted them to hear what he said. The first was to "Jonathan Marks, for his support, friendship, advice, and knowing that performing on the water is the thing that matters most." Secondly, he wanted to thank every rower that he has ever raced with, but particularly singled out "Luka Grubor, Steve Redgrave, Matt Pinsent, Tim Foster, Ed Coode, Steve Williams, Alex Partridge and Bobby Thatcher. I owe all my success to them."
The idea of a year off is not unknown in rowing, and although Crackers may not be one of the tallest members of the British squad, he has always been strong. He will be staying fit, rowing and erging regularly at Leander, where he is still club captain, and he does not expect to lose all his base endurance over the next 12 months. "I think it's entirely possible James could come back and win after doing something else for a year", said Steve Williams, yet to declare his own plans but widely expected to continue. "Years off happen a lot in other countries but not much here. None of us have talked to each other much about these things. As long as what he does makes him happy, that's fine by me."
So, family happy, coach happy, media delighted to have at last squeezed out an answer. The rest of the British internationals will get on with their training and wait and see what happens. If the Crackers Challenge does prove impossible, it will probably be because Britain's heavyweight men's squad has surpassed him. Cracknell would be the first to salute and celebrate that.
Breaking news: Peter Oborne's "Basil D'Oliveira - Cricket and Conspiracy" has won the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2004, beating Matthew PInsent's autobiography, which was one of six shortlisted books.
Links: