Rowing champ Derek is urging others to get fit
Derek Vaughan is proving age is just a number after claiming two British indoor rowing titles – just 12 months after taking up the sport.
Super-fit Vaughan, 75, won over 500m and 2,000m in his 75-plus age category in the British Indoor Rowing Championships at the Lee Valley Velodrome in London, where 2012 Olympic events were staged.
It is the latest in a long line of sporting achievements for the former runner and triathlete, from Stirchley.
Vaughan admits he feels ‘lucky’ to be able to exercise daily and is passionate about encouraging others to become fit and healthy.
“I feel very lucky to enjoy exercise and I always have done,” said Vaughan, a former director in the geophysics industry.
“I find it fun and actually get withdrawal symptoms if I’m not exercising. I’ve always been lucky. People should not be afraid to challenge themselves even if it is only going to the gym three times a week.
“A lot is written about people that don’t exercise regularly and I would like more people to do it. I hope to encourage at least one person – then I’d be pleased. You don’t have to have worked at a sport for 30 years.
“It keeps you fit to do the gardening and DIY and not have to get someone in to do it.”
Vaughan, who was a secondary school teacher later in life, attends Pure Gym daily and is also a member at the Gym Mostyn rowing school at Wrekin College.
He is ranked fifth in the world in his age group across both rowing distances.
“To win after just one year in the sport encourages me to continue,” Vaughan added. “I don’t need to be kept busy because I do a lot of photography but I always want to test myself against other people and the clock. That is why I prefer individual events.”
Vaughan’s fitness levels run in the family. Son Richard has competed in a triathlon recently, alongside Derek, while grandson Cameron is an orienteering champion in South Africa, where he also runs track and cross country.
Two other grandsons play tennis to a high standard in Germany.
The grandfather boasts an impressive sporting CV, having won two British Masters 1,500m track titles, a World Championship M451500m title in Eugene, USA,
He is also a three-times winner of the British Masters category of Modern Pentathlon’s biathlon championships and has represented the United Kingdom three times in the World Triathlon or Duathlon Championships.
