ABOUT ONEWORLD ROWING
ABOUT ONEWORLD ROWING
Why OneWorld Rowing?
Athletes cannot live by GoFundMe alone. They train year-in, year-out, every year, to compete at the highest levels of their sport and to represent their teams, their coaches, their schools, their country. They need more than a flickering candle of support; they need a steady furnace.
Nationally and internationally competitive amateurs need sustained, systematic resources to support their development – during the years spent to reach full athletic potential. They should not bear the entire burden of raising those resources alone.
This, however, is the paradox of rowing in the United States: the further athletes go in their competitive journey, the fewer reliable sources of support they find, and the greater share of that burden they do bear alone. Rowing may have an image of affluence and ample resources, but the reality is that many U.S. athletes and coaches pursue competitive rowing on a meager budget with little or no outside support. Rowing is expensive, it is an amateur endeavor with no professional contracts awaiting even its elite athletes, and the sport’s existing institutions must juggle busy agendas and multiple priorities.
Even rowers fortunate enough to enter the sport at well-funded youth and community programs or varsity college teams will face the challenge of diminishing support, if they pursue the intense training and racing necessary to reach the elite level and represent the U.S. as a National Team athlete.
My fellow directors and I founded OneWorld as a U.S. 501(c)3 charity to address this paradox and to help more athletes and coaches face this challenge by providing annual financial grants and pro bono athlete aid services. We hope to see all ambitious rowers have the means to stick with the sport, to continue their competitive journey to its fullest extent, and to have access to experts in athlete wellness & performance fields such as physical therapy, sport psychology, and sports nutrition.
Why? We believe that more athletes, more coaches, more opportunities to collaborate and to compete at the highest level, are good for the individuals in the sport and good for the sport as a whole. Therein lies OneWorld's definition of success: a broad community of healthy, well-prepared rowers competing at championship-level national and international regattas every year.
OneWorld is also here to encourage others who love the sport to take a similar approach to supporting elite and pre-elite rowers – to Recognize Athlete Development with Annual Resources (RADAR). Advocacy does not mean forming a charity to buy an audience for our own opinions, though. It means forming a charity to provide an additional megaphone for the voices of those in need, so they save their energy and attention for training and racing.
That is why we started OneWorld by consulting numerous athletes and coaches before making any Program or beneficiary choices, and we apply that same discipline to each year. It will always be the experiences and input of athletes and coaches in today's competitive rowing community, not the personal viewpoints of OneWorld directors, that guide our charitable decisions.
Thank you to the rowers who inspire us and to our donors who join us in Supporting Pathways to High Performance.
Sincerely,
Christopher Jackson
Learn more about whom we support and why:
Overview College Club Rowing High Performance Training Groups U.S. Athletes at World Championships
Why OneWorld Rowing?
Athletes cannot live by GoFundMe alone. They train year-in, year-out, every year, to compete at the highest levels of their sport and to represent their teams, their coaches, their schools, their country. They need more than a flickering candle of support; they need a steady furnace.
Nationally and internationally competitive amateurs need sustained, systematic resources to support their development – during the years spent to reach full athletic potential. They should not bear the entire burden of raising those resources alone.
This, however, is the paradox of rowing in the United States: the further athletes go in their competitive journey, the fewer reliable sources of support they find, and the greater share of that burden they do bear alone. Rowing may have an image of affluence and ample resources, but the reality is that many U.S. athletes and coaches pursue competitive rowing on a meager budget with little or no outside support. Rowing is expensive, it is an amateur endeavor with no professional contracts awaiting even its elite athletes, and the sport’s existing institutions must juggle busy agendas and multiple priorities.
Even rowers fortunate enough to enter the sport at well-funded youth and community programs or varsity college teams will face the challenge of diminishing support, if they pursue the intense training and racing necessary to reach the elite level and represent the U.S. as a National Team athlete.
My fellow directors and I founded OneWorld as a U.S. 501(c)3 charity to address this paradox and to help more athletes and coaches face this challenge by providing annual financial grants and pro bono athlete aid services. We hope to see all ambitious rowers have the means to stick with the sport, to continue their competitive journey to its fullest extent, and to have access to experts in athlete wellness & performance fields such as physical therapy, sport psychology, and sports nutrition.
Why? We believe that more athletes, more coaches, more opportunities to collaborate and to compete at the highest level, are good for the individuals in the sport and good for the sport as a whole. Therein lies OneWorld's definition of success: a broad community of healthy, well-prepared rowers competing at championship-level national and international regattas every year.
OneWorld is also here to encourage others who love the sport to take a similar approach to supporting elite and pre-elite rowers – to Recognize Athlete Development with Annual Resources (RADAR). Advocacy does not mean forming a charity to buy an audience for our own opinions, though. It means forming a charity to provide an additional megaphone for the voices of those in need, so they save their energy and attention for training and racing.
That is why we started OneWorld by consulting numerous athletes and coaches before making any Program or beneficiary choices, and we apply that same discipline to each year. It will always be the experiences and input of athletes and coaches in today's competitive rowing community, not the personal viewpoints of OneWorld directors, that guide our charitable decisions.
Thank you to the rowers who inspire us and to our donors who join us in Supporting Pathways to High Performance.
Sincerely,
Christopher H. Jackson
Learn more about whom we support and why:
Overview College Club Rowing High Performance Training Groups U.S. Athletes at World Championships
Our Staff
Our Staff
Chris Jackson learned to scull at the Rudergesellschaft Heidelberg (Germany) in 1990. Chris has competed in the 1x, mens 2x, mixed 2x & mixed 4x as a club sculler and has medaled at numerous regattas incl. USRowing Masters National and World Masters. He has also trained extensively on the erg up to the 42K marathon and 100K ultra distances. Chris first volunteered as a youth coach in 2009, earned a USRowing Level II Coach certificate, and now coaches at Albemarle High School (VA). Chris has also enjoyed seeing his daughter take to the sport avidly as a youth sculler and soon-to-be college rower.
Christopher Jackson
Executive & Program Director
Michaela Smith graduated from Christopher Newport University in the Spring of 2021 with a major in Communications and a minor in Writing. During her four years at CNU, she held the role of Secretary on the CNU Club Tennis Team. As Communications Director at OneWorld, Michaela oversees messaging and content, helping to ensure OneWorld’s mission and vision are effectively communicated on all platforms. For Michaela, working at OneWorld helps her continue her passion for college club athletics while learning more about the awesome world of rowing!
Michaela Smith
Communications Director
Shaw Newman is an Outreach Consultant for OneWorld Rowing, helping to connect OneWorld with key members of the rowing community and contributing to the research that will inform the organization’s charitable plans. Shaw was introduced to rowing during her time as a coxswain for the University of Michigan Men’s Rowing Team and quickly became passionate about the sport and about the talent and hard work that rowing requires of its athletes. At Michigan, Shaw coxed the 2V8 that won American Collegiate Rowing Association (ACRA) Championships in 2017 in addition to medaling at the Dad Vail Regatta in 2016 and 2017. While on the Michigan Crew, Shaw also served as Treasurer and helped the team navigate the financial and administrative challenges faced by a highly competitive collegiate club program. Since graduating from the University of Michigan and beginning a career, Shaw has remained connected to the sport by coxing for New York Athletic Club and now also assisting with OneWorld's mission.
Shaw Newman
Outreach Consultant
Meet Our Board
Meet Our Board
At the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Ellen competed in two sports, volleyball and rowing. Ellen was 2-seat in the Heavyweight 8+ that got silver at the Dad Vail Regatta her senior year. After college, Ellen competed in road and track cycling and was a 4-year member of the US National Cycling Team, racing in the U.S. and internationally. She won two US national championships (kilometer TT) in track cycling and competed in 1985 and 1987 UCI World Championships (match sprint) and 1986 Goodwill Games, gaining top 10 finishes. Through her experience with US and world governance structures in cycling, Ellen gained an awareness of how sports governance shapes funding for athletes' training and competition. In recent years Ellen has devoted considerable time to volunteer coaching for Western Albemarle (VA) High School Crew, with a careful and analytical approach to on-the-water skill development and erg conditioning. Ellen has earned her USRowing Level II Coaching certificate. She's also active as a rower on the water (1x) and on the erg.
Ellen Braun
After four years of high school cross country and track Denise found rowing at Marist College, where she competed for four years and was captain her senior year. She also ran cross country for two seasons. During her senior year she coached the women’s novice team at FDR High School. After college she coached the women at Manhattan College. Denise has continued to train and race successfully since college - at Empire State Rowing (NYC), Sound Shores, Nereid Boat Club (NJ), Passaic River Rowing (NJ), and now at Nashville Rowing Club (TN). During her years as a masters rower, Denise has been an active club board and committee member. Denise’s rowing career has led her to the four corners of the United States competing in local, national and international regattas. Denise currently works for a global financial services company. She lives in Tennessee with her husband and son.
Denise Cenit
Peter started rowing in high school in the 1970s and was a member and captain of the Dartmouth College Heavyweight Crew. While at Dartmouth he was president of the Dartmouth Rowing Club and recipient of the Stewards Award. He coached St. John’s High School (Shrewsbury, MA) to a top 5 finish at the Head of the Charles in 1984 and coached the Dartmouth Freshman Heavyweight squad the following year. After college he rowed at Riverside Boat Club in Boston and has trained extensively on the erg throughout his life. Peter returned to the water in 2013 as a volunteer to help coach the Western Albemarle High School (VA) Crew, and both of Peter’s daughters competed in lightweight and open 2x’s and 4x’s for Western Albemarle.
Peter Massarelli
Roger Payne rowed at the University of Washington and sculled at Lake Washington Rowing Club, winning 4 Canadian Henley gold medals in the Lightweight 2x. Roger worked for both Pocock Racing Shells and Owen Racing Shells and coached at Lake Washington R.C., Seattle Pacific University, Oregon State University, University of Wisconsin, and University of Virginia. He has also coached at numerous USRowing development and selection camps for Junior and Senior men and women in both sweep and sculling boats. Roger has worked with several U.S. National Team and Olympic scullers, including the 2012 bronze medalist Paralympic Mixed 2x. Roger recently retired from his role as boatman for University of Virginia Women’s Rowing but continues to help youth and masters athletes learn the sport at Rivanna (VA) Rowing Club.
Roger Payne
At the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Ellen competed in two sports, volleyball and rowing. Ellen was 2-seat in the Heavyweight 8+ that got silver at the Dad Vail Regatta her senior year. After college, Ellen competed in road and track cycling and was a 4-year member of the US National Cycling Team, racing in the U.S. and internationally. She won two US national championships (kilometer TT) in track cycling and competed in 1985 and 1987 UCI World Championships (match sprint) and 1986 Goodwill Games, gaining top 10 finishes. Through her experience with US and world governance structures in cycling, Ellen gained an awareness of how sports governance shapes funding for athletes' training and competition. In recent years Ellen has devoted considerable time to volunteer coaching for Western Albemarle (VA) High School Crew, with a careful and analytical approach to on-the-water skill development and erg conditioning. Ellen has earned her USRowing Level II Coaching certificate. She's also active as a rower on the water (1x) and on the erg.
Ellen Braun
After four years of high school cross country and track Denise found rowing at Marist College, where she competed for four years and was captain her senior year. She also ran cross country for two seasons. During her senior year she coached the women’s novice team at FDR High School. After college she coached the women at Manhattan College. Denise has continued to train and race successfully since college - at Empire State Rowing (NYC), Sound Shores, Nereid Boat Club (NJ), Passaic River Rowing (NJ), and now at Nashville Rowing Club (TN). During her years as a masters rower, Denise has been an active club board and committee member. Denise’s rowing career has led her to the four corners of the United States competing in local, national and international regattas. Denise currently works for a global financial services company. She lives in Tennessee with her husband and son.
Denise Cenit
Peter started rowing in high school in the 1970s and was a member and captain of the Dartmouth College Heavyweight Crew. While at Dartmouth he was president of the Dartmouth Rowing Club and recipient of the Stewards Award. He coached St. John’s High School (Shrewsbury, MA) to a top 5 finish at the Head of the Charles in 1984 and coached the Dartmouth Freshman Heavyweight squad the following year. After college he rowed at Riverside Boat Club in Boston and has trained extensively on the erg throughout his life. Peter returned to the water in 2013 as a volunteer to help coach the Western Albemarle High School (VA) Crew, and both of Peter’s daughters competed in lightweight and open 2x’s and 4x’s for Western Albemarle.
Peter Massarelli
Roger Payne rowed at the University of Washington and sculled at Lake Washington Rowing Club, winning 4 Canadian Henley gold medals in the Lightweight 2x. Roger worked for both Pocock Racing Shells and Owen Racing Shells and coached at Lake Washington R.C., Seattle Pacific University, Oregon State University, University of Wisconsin, and University of Virginia. He has also coached at numerous USRowing development and selection camps for Junior and Senior men and women in both sweep and sculling boats. Roger has worked with several U.S. National Team and Olympic scullers, including the 2012 bronze medalist Paralympic Mixed 2x. Roger recently retired from his role as boatman for University of Virginia Women’s Rowing but continues to help youth and masters athletes learn the sport at Rivanna (VA) Rowing Club.
Roger Payne
Learn more about whom we support here.
Learn more about whom we support here.
Make a Donation
OneWorld Rowing is a 501(c)3 and depends on contributions from people like you.
Your donation supports our mission!
Make a Donation
OneWorld Rowing is a 501(c)3 and depends on contributions from people like you.
Your donation supports our mission!
ONEWORLD ROWING
Athletes do not exist to serve sport.
Sport exists to serve athletes.