Vincent and Beryl Home their third Pan Pacific Masters Games. Photo: Georgia Schampers
Wednesday 7 November
by Georgia Schampers
There are some wonderful husband and wife stories at this year’s Pan Pacific Masters Games but a pair of indoor rowers have taken it to another level.
The oldest competitor at the Pan Pacific Masters Games, 93-year-old Vincent Home,is sharing his love of sport with his 87-year-old wife Beryl.
Beryl and Vincent, from Redlands, are participating at their third Pan Pacs together in the sport of indoor rowing being held at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Today they both won gold medals in the age groups with Vincent clocking 10:26.0 in the 2000m and 02:11.4 in the 500m, while Beryl completed her 500m race in 2:37.5.
The couple, married for 68 years, has been playing sport together since 1950, with indoor rowing their latest pursuit.
“We enjoy competing together and I help him hear (Vincent has hearing difficulty) when his races begin but Vince is definitely better than me still,” Beryl said.
“We’ll have been married 69 years in January and first met on the tennis court,” she said.
Living out in the country and with two children, Beryl and Vincent learnt that playing sport together fits into their lifestyle.
They were regulars on the golf course and tennis court whilst Vincent also played club cricket.
“Sport has always been a part of our family – our eldest son played baseball for Australia for over 10 years, our other son plays cricket and does rowing, and our daughter is the CEO of Softball Queensland,” Beryl said.
The couple were introduced to indoor rowing six years ago and purchased their own machine to train on.
They both believe the sport has been vital in keeping them young.
“Being competitive is our secret to staying active and fit,” Beryl said.
“We do a lot of caravanning and love the outdoors but we really make an effort to be active especially as we age.”
While they won’t be attending the nightly entertainment at the Games Village, the couple love the spirit of the games and the people involved.
“It’s just doing the best we can now,” she said.
Beryl supporting Vince during his event.
Beryl also has some tips for newcomers to indoor rowing.
“If you want to try indoor rowing, you have to get the technique right first – you can tell if someone is properly trained,” she said.
