One of the hidden bright sides about a work-from-home order is that you can now open pictures of the Warwick Rowers on your web browser during the day and not have to memorize the “switch tabs to Microsoft Excel” shortcut for when your supervisor enters the room.
It’s another way the Rowers are trying to help all of us through these difficult times. Now rebranded as Worldwide Roar, the group just published its April edition of ROAR Portfolio, a monthly digital download, dedicated to life in the era of pandemic-related quarantine.
According Worldwide Roar’s most recent Instagram post, this issue of ROAR features “home interviews, tips for entertainment in quarantine, and updates from the guys.”
There are also photographs that might be of interest.
Worldwide Roar’s website promises that each issue features video and content created directly by WR members and proclaims that it “offers male athletes from any sport the opportunity to test their assumptions about who they are as men,” addressing a range of topics, including “gender equality, male mental health, LGBT rights, and, of course, our relationships with our bodies.” You can subscribe to ROAR here.
Furthermore, Worldwide Roar is utilizing social media to engage its planet-encompassing fanbase, posting another pic that declares, “And we get bored stuck inside too—so set us a challenge! If we think we can do it, we’ll give it a try!”
This also functions as a dare to WR’s fanbase to see if they can suggest a challenge that won’t get Worldwide Roar kicked off Instagram.
The Warwick Rowers are most well known for their annual calendar, a charity fundraising publication featuring their members posing in the nude, and for their subsequent embrace of their legions of gay fans. Their calendar even got banned in Russia, so you know it’s good.
After the Rowers were permanently deactivated by Instagram in 2018, they took the opportunity to rebrand themselves as Worldwide Roar, defined as “an inclusive campaign that offers sportsmen everywhere [the chance] to experience the journey of the original Warwick Rowers.”
In addition to expanding the group’s reach, Worldwide Roar’s famous calendar has become more focused on inclusion as well. As WR producer Angus Malcolm told Ask Men, the latest calendar shoot was “50/50 straight and LGBT” and also featured a trans athlete for the first time.
“Over thirty men took part,” Malcolm said, “from all levels of rowing, including GB squad members, and from a range of other sports, including football, boxing, cricket, rugby, and MMA.”
All net profits from Worldwide Roar products benefit SportAllies, the group’s inclusion-centered charity dedicated to “promoting sport as an inclusive and supportive route to personal growth for everyone.”
During these times, it’s imperative to stay home as much as possible, which is understandably difficulty at times. But thanks to Worldwide Roar, staring at the wall just got a little bit more enjoyable.