‘Overwhelming’ response to record-breaking rower
Thomas Cremona considering offer of another world record attempt across Indian Ocean
Rowing champion Thomas Cremona has reached his goal not only in breaking the transatlantic rowing record but even in reaching out to cancer sufferers as many of their relatives have contacted him since his return.
Mr Cremona, who returned from Barbados on Saturday after a whole month rowing across the Atlantic, said the local response had been “overwhelming”.
One man wrote in to Mr Cremona to say how his story touched him – his niece was battling with cancer, at the same age, four, that Mr Cremona was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.
“If I could make a small difference, it’s worth it,” the humble rower said. Since his return, Mr Cremona was surprised to find people on the streets were recognising him, walking up to him and congratulating him.
“It’s been such a warm response,” he exclaimed, pointing out that he was glad to be back at home, surrounded by friends and family. Even eating pastizzi, he said, felt like a novelty and really made him remember how lucky he was to be in Malta after a gruelling month at sea.
“Out on the ocean, life was extremely tough,” he said, recalling how the sea-sickness he battled during the first 20 days, combined with the lack of sleep and relatively tasteless food, made the record attempt extremely challenging.
He still felt fatigued from the trip and spent most of the last few days asleep, in spite of being in a top-notch hotel on the edge of one of the white sandy beaches of Barbados.
“The other day I went out for a walk and thought I should pause to take in the moment for a minute,” Mr Cremona said. Although his body was still battling with the aftermath of the trip, he still could not get himself to say he was tired. He has even set his sights on other challenges.
The row opened up many opportunities for him and people had contacted him to join them in their adventures.
The skipper of the Sara G, Matt Craughwell, who led the international team across the Atlantic, has even asked him to join him in another world record attempt across the Indian Ocean.
However, Mr Cremona prefers to remain noncommittal for now, saying he was still recovering from the trip and was taking all these offers into consideration.
“The row opened up many opportunities. I’m taking it day by day and relaxing for another week and then I’ll take it from there,” he said.