Wirral grandad of nine smashes British indoor rowing record

Mar 3 2010 by Alan Weston, Birkenhead News

Wirral grandad of nine smashes British indoor rowing record

EIGHTY-year-old Kevin McKeown boasts the kind of fitness levels that would put most people half his age – and even younger – to shame.

Now the Thingwall grandad of nine has the honours to prove it.

He has just smashed the British record for the fastest indoor rowing time in the heavyweight 80-plus class.

At the indoor rowing championships held at the Manchester Velodrome he clocked a new record time by rowing 2,000m in 8 min 28.5 sec. The previous record, which had stood since 2003, was 8 min 34.2 sec.

Kevin said: “There are a number of competitions each year. But I had to wait for one after my birthday to compete in the 80-plus age group. The first one that came up was the English Championships at the Velodrome.

“I wanted to put in a good time with the aim of breaking the British record. My aim was to win, not just take part.”

Kevin trains intensively three times a week for an hour at Total Fitness gym, in Prenton. He is a qualified trainer and has already broken a number of records since taking up the sport seriously at the age of 68.