UCLA Crew Credits Coach for Win Over Oxford

The flags of the United States, Great Britain and Japan were flying from the boathouse on Ballona Creek in Marina del Rey Saturday afternoon when the Bruin heavyweight varsity eight finished ahead of Oxford and Keio University to win the fourth annual UCLA Crew Classic. Perhaps the flag of Poland should have been flying, too.

Zenon Babraj, UCLA’s first-year coach, was a three-time national champion in Poland. He also coached in Poland before seeking political refugee status in the United States, where he is now an assistant coach for the U.S. team.

Jay Tint, UCLA’s coxswain, said that Babraj definitely had instilled a more enthusiastic, more team-oriented feeling among the Bruin crew.

And Oxford Coach Dan Topolski also credited Babraj when he noted that UCLA was “much better, much more motivated” this year.

UCLA finished ahead of Oxford in the UCLA Crew Classic last year, too, but just by a couple of inches as they raced for second place behind Cal.

This time, the Bruin crew was well in control of the race by the midway point (1,000 meters) and finished a full boat-length ahead of Oxford.

UCLA finished in 6 minutes 34.8 seconds to 6:42.27 for Oxford and 6:52.57 for Keio.

Topolski said: “I was quite pleased with our row. I thought we really did quite well. But UCLA is really moving up. We knew they would be hard to beat.”

The Oxford crew, which has undergone major changes over the last few months after a chain of personality conflicts resulted in a walkout by several internationally competitive Americans, underwent another change this week when its team captain, Donald MacDonald, injured his back in practice.

Gavin Screaton, a graduate student who had not competed all year but who was brought out of retirement to serve as an alternate after the loss of the Americans, filled in.

Topolski said that the change made quite a bit of difference, but he wasn’t dwelling on that disadvantage in light of the margin of the UCLA victory. MacDonald joked that the effect of his absence was “immense . . . immeasurable” but then pleaded with reporters not to take him seriously.

MacDonald was at the center of what he termed Oxford’s “troubles” and the last thing anyone on the Oxford crew wanted on an otherwise lovely afternoon in the marina was any hint of controversy.

Besides, UCLA had made some last-minute changes, too.

“We were still making some switching and having seat-racing until Thursday,” Babraj said. “The JV suffered the most from that, because they had the least experience.”

UCLA’s junior varsity heavyweight eight lost to Orange Coast College by about a second earlier in the day.

UCLA raced with a crew that included Tint as coxswain and Mike Still as stroke rower, with Chris Hirth, Ritchie Sax, Mark Klein, Stefano Volianitis, Mike Stralka, Bruce Appleyard and Marc Batchelder.

The Bruins went with a crew long on physical strength. Keio, with the smallest crew and lightest boat, jumped out to the early lead, rowing at a very fast pace. But Tint said he knew that that would not last, and it didn’t.

The Bruins kept a pretty steady pace over the entire 2,000 meters, picking it up a bit at the end when Oxford made its move.

UCLA’s competitions are usually run in the opposite direction (usually from the ocean inland) but the Crew Classic was run toward the ocean so that the spectators at the boathouse would be closer to the finish. That meant that the crews were rowing into the wind.

UCLA looked strong all the way.

Babraj said: “Early in the week we didn’t have the form that we wanted to have. We had to try some changes to bring the form back, and I think we found it. . . . The win was so convincing. We had open water.”