Irish Solo Rower, Dr. Karen Weekes is set to complete her Record-Breaking Bid to be the 1st Irish woman to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean.
After beginning her journey in Gran Canaria, Canary Islands on the 6th of December of last year, Karen is due to finish her journey, arriving in Barbados tomorrow, Thursday the 24th of February 2022 at approximately 12 noon Barbados time (GMT-4), after a lengthy 80 days at sea.
Karen will be welcomed into a bustling Bridgetown, Barbados, tomorrow noon Barbados time (GMT-4) as crowds will gather to cheer the Irishwoman on as she arrives into the port. 30 of Karen’s friends, family and colleagues flew over to Barbados with Aer Lingus at the weekend to witness and celebrate her achievement. In true Bajan style, a welcome party will be organised to celebrate Karen’s arrival to Barbados and her achievement of becoming the first Irish female to row any ocean solo and the 20th female in the world to row an ocean solo.
Karen has been a lecturer at Munster Technological University since 2004 on the Health and Leisure degree. With a PhD in sport psychology, Karen has worked extensively with both elite and non-elite athletes, specialising within the endurance genre.
Endurance exploits have been a passion for Karen for all her life and has included both water and land-based journeys, including cycling solo across Canada (Vancouver to Halifax) 4003 miles / 6442 kms, circumnavigating Ireland by Kayak (1,000 miles) and climbing Kilimanjaro and Mount Kenya in Africa.
Commenting on her sailing expedition, Dr. Karen Weekes said “I’ve done a lot of endurance journeys before this, so this [was] really the next logical step for me – a feat of endurance to try and push myself mentally and physically further”
Karen’s journey across the Atlantic was documented on social media through the #SHECANDO2021 campaign. Through this campaign, Karen aims to encourage females to push themselves outside their comfort zones. Furthermore, she aims to bring awareness of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – specifically gender equality and ocean conservation and sustainability. Full details of the #SHECANDO2021 campaign can be found on Karen’s website: https://shecando2021.org/
Karen speaks of her motivations behind starting the #SHECANDO2021 campaign. “When I was cycling across Canada, I was looking up other female solo cyclists who had crossed Canada. I thought I would relate better to seeing how a female coped with it. There really wasn’t many. I think having somebody who has done it before makes it easier for other women so my plan, as part of the SHECANDO campaign, is to provide a platform for other girls and women to do things that push them outside their comfort zone”.
The #SHECANDO2021 aims and ethos
- To get Karen across the Atlantic, with people sharing the journey, through the preparatory and ‘action’ phases of the row.
- Provide a platform for encouraging women, and girls, to push themselves outside their current comfort zone and to believe in their abilities to succeed both in their work and everyday lives.
- Increase female participation in adventure sports.
- Illuminate two of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, specifically ‘gender equality’ and ‘life below water’, which focuses on the conservation of oceans and marine life. The #SHECANDO2021 team are working hard to ensure these underpinning philosophies remain prevalent throughout the entire campaign.
ENDS
About Barbados
The island of Barbados offers a unique Caribbean experience steeped in rich history and colourful culture, and rooted in remarkable landscapes. Barbados is the home of two of the three remaining Jacobean Mansions left in the Western hemisphere, as well as fully functional rum distilleries. In fact, this island is known as the birthplace of rum, commercially producing and bottling the spirit since the 1700s. Each year, Barbados hosts several world-class events including the annual Barbados Food and Rum Festival; the annual Barbados Reggae Festival; and the annual Crop Over Festival, where celebrities such as Lewis Hamilton and its very own Rihanna are often spotted. Accommodations are wide and varied, ranging from picturesque plantation houses and villas to quaint bed and breakfast gems; prestigious international chains; and award-winning five-diamond resorts. In 2018, Barbados’ accommodation sector captured 13 awards in the Top Hotels Overall, Luxury, All-Inclusive, Small, Best Service, Bargain, and Romance categories of the ‘Traveler’s Choice Awards’. And getting to paradise is a breeze: the Grantley Adams International Airport offers plenty non-stop and direct services from a growing number of U.S., U.K., Canadian, Caribbean, European, and Latin American gateways, making Barbados the true gateway to the Eastern Caribbean. Visit Barbados and experience why for two years in a row it won the prestigious Star Winter Sun Destination Award at the ‘Travel Bulletin Star Awards’ in 2017 and 2018. For more information on travel to Barbados, visit www.visitbarbados.org, follow on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/VisitBarbados, and via Twitter @Barbados.