National rep raised in rural Marlborough

There aren’t many opportunities to row a boat when you’re from a remote high-country station, but a Marlborough teen has taken to the sport like a duck to water.

Jack Pitts grew up in Awatere Valley, where home-schooling, hunting, and helping out on the farm were his main priorities.

That was before he started at boarding school in Christchurch four years ago.

“I didn’t do it until I started at STAC (St Andrew’s College), and it’s pretty big sport at STAC, so I was like ‘ah well, I’ll give it a go’,” Pitts said. “I was never really planning on doing it.”

The 17-year-old had been rowing for the school ever since, and last month was named in the New Zealand team competing at the 2024 World Rowing Under-19 Championships in St Catharines, Canada from August 21 to 25.

“I enjoyed it and kept on doing it, and then here we are,” Pitts said.

“I never thought I’d actually make it ... I thought I’d have a go at it, sort of see how I went.”

Having been home-schooled until he was high-school age at his parent’s home in Awatere Valley, a 90-minute drive from Blenheim, boarding in Christchurch and taking up rowing had been a “pretty big jump”.

“But yeah, really enjoyed it, and it’s good making good mates and stuff. It’s pretty different, though, from being in the middle of nowhere to a big city,” Pitts said.

“Everywhere’s far [from home] anyway, so may as well go to Christchurch.”

His accolades this year included gold medals with the St Andrew’s boys under-18 coxed four and coxed eight at the South Island Secondary School Championships, and a silver medal from the 2024 Aon Maadi Cup.

But out of all the rowing highlights so far, getting picked for the World Championships in Canada was the main one: “Yeah, that should be pretty cool.”

Although Pitts would be a travelling reserve for the Kiwi team’s eight squad, he would get out on the water regardless of whether he was needed as a fill-in.

“There’s another guy who’s a reserve for the quad, and then we row a pair together. So we’ll row that at worlds, unless they need us,” he said.

The other Marlburian selected for the national under-19 team was Marlborough

Girls’ College student Mila van Rensburg, who would be rowing in the women’s coxless four.

The under-19 men’s boats were stacked with South Islanders, and Pitts fellow St Andrew’s rowing mate Charlie Butterfield had also made the cut for the Canada.

“He’s one of my best mates, so yeah, it’s a bit of fun,” Pitts said.

ELIZABETH INGLIS PHOTOGRAPHY Pitts, second from left, is part of the St Andrew’s College boys under-18 coxed four team that took home a silver medal from this years Aon Maadi Cup.