In this issue

EDITORIAL 3

ELIsAbETA LIpA WENT

TO THE sTART TO WIN 4

THE fREsH AND THE fAmED 6

YOuNg AND gETTINg fAsTER 8

ORANgE fIREWORks IN THE mAkINg 10

Of Luck AND sYNcHRONIcITY 11

NEW bREATH fOR gAbRIELLA 12

THE WAIT Is OvER 13

OLYmpIc gAmEs 14

REmAININg IN THE gROOvE 18

Issue 6 – August 2008

Olympic dream

www.tempo-tech.com

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Editorial

the 2008 Beijing olympic Games has brought new momentum to the sport of rowing in asia. this was clearly evident at the olympic Qualification regatta in Shanghai at the end of april. a record 66 crews, representing 24 National Federations raced at the event, with fierce competition for 17 qualifying places. the East asian region again proved the strongest, claiming 9 places, but crews from Central asia, South asia, South East asia and the Middle East will be represented in Beijing also.

Of particular note was the increase in participation from the Middle East following the Doha Asian Games and FISA’s subsequent development initiatives in the region. The qualification of a male and a female single sculler from Iran was a major highlight. Iraq will also be represented in the men’s double after gaining a tripartite place.

Host nation China has long been the dominant rowing power in the region. The Chinese Rowing Federation is able to draw upon a huge pool of athletes, under professional training, in almost every major province. This

depth of talent can be seen at the National Games, held every quadrennial in the year following the Olympics. The challenge has been to bring together the best of this talent, and to provide them with the necessary inter­national experience and technical expertise to excel on the world stage. With the Olympic Games taking place on home soil, considerable resources have been applied to achieving this goal. Under the leadership of Asian Rowing Federation President Mr. Wei Di, with the technical expertise of coach Igor Grinko and an experienced team of Chinese coaches, the results so far have been clear to see. China has qualified 11 boats for the Games and has already made a major impact on the medal distribution at the 2008 Rowing World Cup. Much is expected in Beijing.

It should not be forgotten however that China also contributes significantly to the overall development of rowing in the region. With the support of the Asian Rowing Federation, China is a willing and frequent host of major events and training camps. Chinese boat builders also provide support and low­cost boat material to Asian teams. Chinese coaches work in various parts of the region, and top Chinese athletes serve as role models for Asian rowing success. Asian rowers must take up the challenge!

Chris Perry FISA Development Consultant ­ Asia

China, a role model for Asian rowing

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“I WENT TO THE START TO WIN” – Elisabeta Lipa

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Lipa’s rowing career spanned more than 20 years in which she competed in both sweep rowing and sculling. Her first Olympic gold medal was won in Los Angeles in 1984 in the women’s double at age 19. Twenty years later, she left the Athens Olympics with her fifth Olympic gold, a feat only equalled in the men’s category by Sir Steven Redgrave of Great Britain. Within those twenty years, Lipa retired twice, rowed under two different names (her maiden name Oleniuc and married name Lipa), went from sculling to sweep rowing, from single scull to double scull to eight and to fours, quads and pairs, making her unquestionably one of the most successful and versatile rowers of all time.

One of the biggest battles that Lipa had to fight against her fellow Romanians was her right to be in the single. And it was in that event that she won the most memorable of her Olympic Gold medals: the single sculls in Barcelona in 1992. There she beat

Belgium’s Annelies Bredael and Canada’s Silken Laumann by just over a second in a memorable race. And Lipa has no doubt that it was racing the single that gave her the most pleasure: “It was the hardest but the most fulfilling. There is no one to talk to. You’re all alone, there is no one to help you. Inside the crew, when you have a moment of weakness, one of the teammates helps you out. But in the single, if you’re down, you are out of the race for good.”

But the Thomas Keller medal was also awarded to Lipa for the impact she had on her teammates. With three Olympic Golds in the eight, that’s hardly surprising. Lipa herself acknowledged that in 2004, at the age of 40, rowing with women much younger than her might have been an issue. But she explains: “I never said ‘I’m Elisabeta Lipa and I rule here.’ Some of them addressed me as ‘Ma’am Lipa’. If we are boat mates we cannot address one another that way. I believe I earned Elisabeta Lipa of Romania >>

Elisabeta lipa, rowing’s most medalled female olympic athlete, was honoured for her outstanding sporting career with the 2008 thomas Keller Medal, the most distinguished award in the sport of rowing.

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Elisabeta Lipa, in the six seat, wins her fifth Olympic gold medal in Athens, Greece, in 2004.

their sympathy and trust by my way of being. They are my best friends.”

Asked which of her many victories is her favourite, she replies with a warm smile and a bit of nostalgia: “Each Olympic Games comes with unique and unforgettable moments, but Lucerne is where my best memories lie. I raced there in the single six years in a row. It is the most beautiful place. Winning there is magical. Being in Lucerne is like being at home.”

Her success found its source not only in impeccable training and preparation, but also in her positive outlook: “I was aware my opponents were on a par with me, but I never went to the start with a defeated attitude. I went to the start to win.”

Lipa the athlete also took time to become a mother, leaving the sport for a time to have a son. Training and being a mother was not

always easy: “I had to stay away from home to train. In Romania, we couldn’t go back home every evening after training; sometimes we could go home on the weekends. But my family always supported me and pushed me to be an elite sportswoman. They were always close to me.”

Endlessly, her drive kept pressing her on. Every time she reached a goal, she would set a higher one. Every time she won, she had the desire to keep on winning. After Athens, she expected to come back in time for Beijing. But first there was another task to tend to: ask the Romanian government to build an Olympic regatta course in her home country. “In Romania, despite our rowing tradition, despite the results we obtain in rowing, we have no venue that meets FISA standards.” Lipa dreams of seeing Romania welcome European Championships, Rowing World Cups and World Rowing Championships. But although Beijing is just around the corner, her

dream has not yet become reality, and so she will not compete.

The desire she has to share her love for the sport with Romania and the international community shows just how much more rowing means to her than winning medals. “I did not discover rowing. Rowing discovered me when I was 16. A coach came to our school, and described it like this: Rowing in extra light boats, on a lake just for you, out in the sun. It sounded like holidays. I went to try it out, liked it immediately and stayed in it for 24 years.”

In addition to her career in the Romanian Police force, Lipa is an appointed member of FISA’s Athlete’s Commission and as such is now giving back to international rowing through her involvement with the International Rowing Federation.

■ Martin Cross/Marion Gallimore/Débora Feutren

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top rowErS

In the stroke seat is Nathan Cohen. At 83kg and 181cm tall, he is on the small side of elite scullers. Behind him in bow is one of the giants of rowing, both in terms of physique and accomplishment: Rob Waddell. Waddell weighs 100kg and is a full 19cm taller than Cohen.

Cohen, 22, started rowing in 1999. At that time, Waddell, 33, had already been to the Olympic Games and earned a World Championship title. Cohen knew of Waddell, who had become a household name in New Zealand after winning gold at the 2000 Olympics, and could never have imagined that in a few short years he would be rowing with him.

At the end of 2000, Cohen, then a high school student, was just getting started in the sport of rowing. Waddell had just retired from the sport and was looking for new challenges.

While Waddell moved on to other sports – having a stint at top level rugby before taking up the position of grinder for Team New Zealand at the America’s Cup – Cohen was making junior steps in the rowing world. As Waddell went into his first America’s Cup campaign in 2003, Cohen made the New Zealand junior rowing team and finished second in the single at the World Rowing Junior Championships. Waddell, as part of Team New Zealand, finished second at the sailing regatta – or in America’s Cup terms, he and his team lost the Cup.

The following year Cohen won silver again as a junior. Two years later, at the World Rowing Under 23 Championships, Cohen finished second yet again. Waddell remained with the

sailing team moving on to the next America’s Cup campaign.

In 2007 Cohen made New Zealand’s senior rowing team for the first time and was sent to the World Rowing Championships to try and qualify the double (with partner Matthew Trott) for the Beijing Olympic Games. Their sixth place finish meant they were successful. Meanwhile 2007 meant another America’s Cup competition for Waddell. His Team New Zealand finished second again.

The fresh and the famed –

if you believe blending differences can form a crew, then you will love New Zealand’s newest combination, the men’s double.

Nathan Cohen and Rob Waddell

The Men's Double Sculls from New Zealand with Rob Waddell (b) and Nathan Cohen (s) racing their heat at the 2008 Rowing World Cup in Lucerne, Switzerland.

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Later that year Waddell took his single off the shelf where it had been sitting for seven years to row on Lake Karapiro where Cohen was also rowing. Waddell remained quiet about his rowing intentions and started his rowing comeback cautiously. “I had to be realistic at the start of the season. I had to lose 20kg (muscle he had developed for sailing) and I hadn’t rowed for seven years. There were so many things that could have stopped my comeback from happening. I had an ambition but I kept it to myself.” Waddell remained low key, but beating reigning World Champion in the single Mahe Drysdale at a small local regatta got the rowing rumour mill started.

Waddell quickly dismisses his break from the sport, “I never left the sport,” he says. “I wanted to do Athens (2004 Olympics) but I was told it was not good for my heart.”

His heart problem (atrial fibrillation) flared up for the first time in years when he went

head to head against Drysdale in a race to help decide who would be chosen as New Zealand’s Olympic single sculler. Waddell was barely able to finish the race. Drysdale was selected to be the single sculler and Waddell was given the option of going into the double. Waddell’s patriotic nature helped make his decision; he wanted to compete for New Zealand at the Beijing Olympics.

Racing for the first time internationally after an eight­year hiatus (at this year’s Lucerne Rowing World Cup), Waddell says it was not too much of a shock: “The summer racing (in the single against Drysdale) was so competitive that it brought me up to speed pretty quickly.”

Spending the majority of his career in a single required some adaptation for Waddell as he stepped into the double. “It’s almost more challenging,” says Waddell. “You have to fit in with the other guy. You have to be perfectly

matched.” Waddell adds that the difference in their height is not an issue. “The main thing is that the blades go in and out of the water together.”

Waddell remains “open­minded” about his post­Beijing plans. “I’m actually sailing straight after rowing. The rules have changed (in the America’s Cup race) which means grinders will be down to around 100kg. This means I might be more suited for the new cut of boat.”

Chris Nilsson, the coach of Cohen and Waddell, has the double training alongside New Zealand’s men’s four for their Olympic preparation. Nilsson has only good things to say about Cohen and Waddell. “Nathan is not overawed by Rob, even though Rob was his hero.” ■ M.S.B.

Nathan Cohen (r) and Rob Waddell (l) of New Zealand.

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RoweRs of the futuRe

Their transition from junior to senior was a radical one, but it worked: “In France, we were not given the option to compete at under­23 level. Either you are placed in the senior or in the under­23 group. At junior level we were already quite serious and trained hard, so we were above our competition nationally,” they explain. “At the end of our first year at senior level we were already among France’s best senior rowers, winning medals in the single at national selection trials.”

In his first year in the quad, Julien found himself rowing with Olympic champion Adrien Hardy. “I was thrown into this crew and found myself with someone I had seen on television, someone I admired,” he says. “Adrien was stronger than me, and yet we

were all going in the same direction ­ without us he couldn’t get anywhere. Rowing with an Olympic champion boosted my self­confidence and made me what I am today.”

For Cedric, rowing with Adrien played a key role in his skills development: “Adrien is very rigorous in training. Every stroke is very, very important. We had not been that conscious of the importance of each stroke before.” As a crew they began climbing the ladder, finishing a credible 5th at the worlds in 2005 and grabbing silver at a World Cup in 2006, but then they suddenly plummeted to 10th place at the World Rowing Championships later that year. “The results were coming; we felt we could do it. But going from a place in the A Final to finishing in the middle

Cedric Berrest and Julien Bahain belong to one of the top boats of their nation. the men’s quad is one of France’s olympic medal hopes. Both Cedric and Julien joined the boat at age 19, fresh out of junior international racing. Cedric made it in time to race at his first olympics while Julien got in a year later, in 2005. Since then, the crew has evolved from a last-place finish at the Games in athens into a force to be reckoned with in the men’s quad event.

YOuNg and getting faster

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Julien Bahain (r) and Cedric Berrest (l)

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of a B Final doesn’t take that much. It can happen very quickly. It only takes one or two seconds in the semifinal,” explain Cedric and Julien. “Our 10th place caused us to totally re­evaluate everything: we changed coaches, we changed boats and our way of rowing a bit.”

That is when the French federation assigned a female coach, Christine Gosse, to their boat. “First we thought, ‘Oh my, what’s going to

happen now?’ but in fact we clicked almost immediately,” they said. “It is somewhat different, in many little ways. She sees things differently. We analyse things a bit differently. She’s a determined woman; we instantly knew where she wanted to go. It’s not a man­to­man dialogue, but the dialogue of a strong­minded woman with men. She pampers us a bit but can also shake us up when we need it. We got into the mould and we liked it.” One year later they won silver at

the Munich World Rowing Championships and their performance has been consistent ever since.

The two crewmates have become friends since rowing together at junior level in 2003. “Cedric has always been my model. I’ve always wanted to do what he did. He gave me the desire to go further,” says Julien. “We have quite a lot in common and do things together outside of rowing. And yet when we’re at the start at a selection trial, it’s war time!” they say. “We know our friendship will last long after we finish rowing. We know we can depend on each other. It isn’t easy to go from situations where we have to be perfectly together and others where we’re competing against each other. It’s a special relationship.”

As for the future of their rowing career, both would like it to last beyond Beijing until the London Games in 2012. They like rowing too much to stop just yet: “We fell into it when we were young. When you do, you never get out!” they exclaim. Between Beijing and London they plan to finish their engineering studies, which they lengthened by two years in order to allow for more training time. “We’ll still be young then – only 26 and 27 – and that’s supposed to be the best years in rowing!” ■ D.F.

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Julien Bahain (s) and Cedric Berrest (two seat) racing at the 2008 Rowing World Cup in Lucerne, Switzerland.

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But to reach Beijing, a stop via Poznan, Poland, was required to qualify for the Games. “It was one of the important things we had to do. We could not win an Olympic medal there, but we could certainly lose it, so we were aware of the stakes,” says Kirsten. The Dutch crew grabbed one of the two last Olympic spots up for grabs at the Final Olympic Qualification Regatta, ahead of the USA.

It has been nearly four years since Athens. After their Olympic bronze there, the duo parted ways. Marit raced on to three World Champion ship gold medals in the lightweight single while Kirsten had a baby. It was only a few months ago, back in January, that the duo got in a boat together again.

To assess how realistic their comeback was, Marit and Kirsten sat down with Coach Josy Verdonkschot to discuss the physical, social and material prerequisites. Josy

explains the main points they covered: “We asked ourselves: are we prepared to do it? Will we enjoy it? Does the National Olympic Committee believe in us? All the answers to those questions were ‘Yes!’”

With the Qualification Regatta behind them, the lightweight crew will go “back to basics” for about two weeks before going to South Korea where the Netherlands’ multi­sport final Olympic training camp will take place. The climate in South Korea is similar to Beijing’s and the time difference is only one hour.

The two Dutch athletes sparkle with confid­ence and enthusiasm. “We are more than ever aware of everything we have to do but also the way we can do it to get the best out of it and enjoy it,” says Marit. “We know how important our experience is,” says Kirsten. “We know what we can do. And I think that’s the most important part – that we know ourselves.”

If they did not think they could reach their goal, they would not have made all those efforts to prepare for Beijing. “We are preparing fireworks for Beijing. We will race so hard on our slides that fire will come out,” they laugh. ■ D.F.

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Orange fireworks in the making

Kirsten van der Kolk (l) and Marit van Eupen (r) with Coach Josy Verdonkschot.

The Dutch lightweight women’s

double sculls with Kirsten Van Der Kolk (b) and Marit Van Eupen (s).

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Beijing will be olympic Games number three for Marit van Eupen and Kirsten van der Kolk of the Netherlands. they made the final in the lightweight double in Sydney and won bronze in athens. this time they will be aiming for gold, no less. if that were not the case, they would not be rowing in golden shoes. “our golden shoes remind us of our goal every stroke,” say the duo.

The 2005 World Rowing Championships was the first time Goldsack and Hykel raced against one another – Goldsack for Great Britain, Hykel for the

United States.

“I was stomped,” said Goldsack with a grudging laugh, refer­ring to Hykel’s dominat­ing performance to win

silver with then partner Julie Nichols.

Goldsack and Hykel would not line up against each other again until a measure of luck synched them up at the spring trials. Goldsack

decided to try out for the 2007 USA team in the lightweight single – being born to an American mother grants her dual citizenship.

Hykel began the 2007 season with a cracked rib and felt she wasn’t ready for the spring double trials, so she thought she’d go for the single. “I didn’t anticipate someone coming from the other side of the pond, and I didn’t think I would be challenged.” But once she got over her anger about finishing second behind her former British rival, she made a critical observation: “She rows like me. I watched her and I was thinking that we would make a good double.”

The two then met up and became psyched about their similar training philosophies. That prompted Hykel to jump on a plane to train with Goldsack in her native country.

Now, a year later, they’ve come through a challenging selection process as the top USA lightweight double, they have found a coach

(Cam Kiosoglous), and they showed they can handle the pressure when their Olympic dream was on the line with just two spots up for grabs in Poznan.

“We both wanted to be in the Olympics but this wasn’t the path we had anticipated,” said Goldsack. “We have synergy and with our similar training philosophy I think there is a real sense of team. I’m just certain with Renee that we’re committed to the same process. We get along well. I’ve never enjoyed a team boat until this year. I’ve had more fun rowing. It’s just the right fit. The only thing missing is the three years of racing the other crews have.”

With the big task of qualifying out of the way, both admitted they have eyes for an Olympic medal. After Beijing, Goldsack will have her eyes on a different event in January 2009 – her wedding with 2004 Olympic Champion in the U.S.A men’s eight, Daniel Beery. ■ L.L.

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Of luck and synchronicity – Goldsack and HykelRenee Hykel (b) and Jennifer

Goldsack (s) from the USA race their morning heat at the 2008 Final Olympic Qualifcation Regatta in Poznan, Poland.

Jennifer Goldsack and renee Hykel started their international rowing careers as rivals on opposite sides of the atlantic. with a bit of luck to bring them together and some fast-found synergy, the duo is now the Beijing-bound u.S.a. lightweight crew after finishing second at the Final olympic Qualification regatta in poznan, poland, in June.

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Gabriella Bascelli persevered and it paid off. 2007 was not a good year. a serious car accident and missing out on olympic qualification as a result gave her doubts about whether or not to carry on rowing. But she did and earned her ticket to Beijing at the last chance qualifying regatta in poznan, poland, in June.

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Gabriella Bascelli and mother Glenda

The South African born rower who races in Italian colours was overjoyed and relieved to have made it. Hugging friends, responding to congratulatory messages on her mobile, all the tension that had mounted prior to the event had disappeared. The night before the final qualification race was not restful: “I slept for about two hours!” she exclaims. But now preferring to celebrate in a club with her mother, catching up on lost sleep would be the lowest item on her list of priorities.

“The hardest thing for me was the mental stress,” says Gabriella. Coming all the way from South Africa to support her daughter, Glenda Bascelli admits the experience was also totally nerve­racking for her: “I called my husband and told him I was too old to go through this,” she says. “There was nothing I could do.”

To manage the stress in the lead up to the regatta, Gabriella tried not to think about it too much. She spent time with her mother and friends, watched comic films and talked about other topics. “My coach and technical director were very tactical by not putting too much pressure on me,” she says. “They told me I was the one who believed I could qualify from the start, that I was the one who had faith in me and that I must not stop believing. Then they did whatever a good coach would do to prepare an athlete for a race and I think they did a very good job, because I qualified.” And before her qualifying race, Gabriella’s coach sang songs in Neapolitan to her: “He’s a Neapolitan and I love Neapolitan songs!”

Now that she is Beijing­bound, Gabriella will focus on training and studying after a four­day stay in London with her mother: “I need

to spend time with my family. Family comes first,” she says. “I’ve worked hard until now and I owe it to myself to take a couple of days for us.” After the Games, in November, she will take her final exams in political science. For Gabriella, 2008 is indeed an eventful year.

Her Olympic dream is no different from what any other athlete would dream of. But what she thinks is important is to give her best and be confident that at the end of her race she did her best. “I think that’s the worst thing for an athlete – finishing the Olympics and knowing you could have done better and given more. So as long as I give my best I’ll be satisfied.” ■ D.F.

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“The rowing was almost the easy part,” says stroke Paul Griffin (2004 Olympian in the light­weight men’s four). “It was dealing with the other stuff, like waiting in your hotel bedroom. Waiting around for the race to come.”

Sitting in the middle of the boat surrounded by teammates Richard Archibald (2004 Olympian in the lightweight men’s four) and Cathal Moynihan, Gearoid Towey has felt the pressure before. He has already been through two Olympic Games (2004 lightweight men’s double and 2000 lightweight men’s four).

Towey describes the final qualification regatta as the focus of their whole year.

Talking to World Rowing’s Debora Feutren just after qualifying, Towey and Griffin were visibly relieved.

“I found it very hard to talk about Beijing before I did this race,” says Towey. Griffin adds, “It’s been similar for me. It’s hard to do this qualifier, it’s the last chance. Everyone’s going for it because it’s either the last race of their career or the last race of the season.”

Before the race their coach, John Holland, kept his talk simple. “He told us just to believe in our abilities, be confident and not to even think about what the stakes were,” says Griffin. “We have a race plan but we generally read the race and adjust accordingly,” says Towey. “We’ve done this a million times and don’t really need anyone to tell us.”

Towey did not encourage any supporters to come to the qualification regatta. “I’ve been through this before and the atmosphere is not great. When you’re under pressure and about to race, everything your family or friends say will be the wrong thing, no matter what they say.”

The four chose not to peak for the qualification regatta and came into the race directly from a six­week training camp. “We took a few risks,” says Griffin. “We’ve been training like we normally would have been for the World Cup season.”

But Griffin admits, “While we didn’t peak, psychologically we probably did, so we need to take a break now.” And, adds Towey, “A break where we don’t have to think about rowing.”

The four will continue their pre­Olympic preparation with a warm­weather camp focusing on speed training. But for Griffin, Archibald, Towey and Moynihan the wait is over. They are on their way to the Olympics. ■ M.S.B. / D.F.

The wait is over The Irish lighweight men’s four in training at the Final Olympic Qualifiction Regatta in Poznan, Poland.

let two seconds go by. it’s not much is it? then wait nearly a year. Now that’s a long time. then sit in a hotel room waiting for the race of your career to begin. this is the story of ireland’s lightweight men’s four. two seconds was all it took for them to miss out on qualifying for the Beijing olympics last year at the world rowing Championships. they had to wait until the Final olympic Qualification regatta in June this year to have another go.

Lassi Karonen

(SWE, M1x)

Rowing in China will

be just great, this whole

thing is just big. It will be my

first time at the Olympics.

After the races I’d like to watch

some other events in the second

week. I wanna watch track and

field, beach volleyball and

men’s handball. I don’t have to

take anything special with me.

The most important thing is

the memory of my newborn

son. He is always in my heart.

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Tracy Cameron

(CAN, LW2x, stroke)

It will be the first Olympic Games for Melanie

and me so we are really looking forward to it.

Quality racing is what I am anticipating the

most! My double partner Melanie Kok and my

unisuit are my “must-have items”, everything else

is just a “nice-to-have”. My immediate family

(mom, dad & brother) will be making the big trek

to Beijing! However, there will be many more

supporters that will be there in spirit,

including: members of the Calgary Rowing

Club, my family and friends coast-to-

coast who already have big plans to be

glued to the tube, and in my home town,

one of the pubs that will be airing the race

live for the local fans! Really, the amount

of support that Mel and I have behind us

is outstanding! We consider ourselves

very fortunate.

Akiko Iwamoto ( JPN, LW2x, stroke)The Olympic Games is special because it’s every four years. The last two times I simply took part (14th in Sydney and 13th in Athens), but this time I’d like to be more competitive. It was very tough missing out on qualification in Munich last year by only 0.05 seconds, but we qualified at the Asian Qualification Regatta last April and are in a better position than in previous years.

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Mahe Drysdale (NZL, M1x)

I’m looking forward to the experience. It’s going to be quite different from Athens.

Most of my family, my girlfriend and friends will be coming - about 12 to 15

people - plus all the parents of the New Zealand rowers - about 80 - will come. My

tour in Beijing last September was to go and get an idea of Beijing.

Michal Stawowski (POL, M8+, 2 seat)Every rower who is going to Beijing wants to have the best placing they can. Eight men’s eights will be at the start, so if we go to the final it will be great. I will have my father come watch in Beijing. For good luck, I have my special underwear. I hope to go watch some of the other Polish athletes – we have men’s and women’s volleyball and men’s handball.

David Crawshay

(AUS, M2x, bow)

I studied Chinese back

in school, unfortunately

I forgot a lot of it but I am

looking forward to catching up a bit

again. I am also sure that there will

be many Australian supporters and

tourists in China which will be just

great for us.

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Thomas Larsen (DEN, M2-, stroke)

This is my first time at the Olympics. First of all, the experience of seeing an Olympic Games is big I think, but of course, I’ve been training all my life so I’m not just going there to be a tourist. I will try to do my best. We are not in a medal position, but we’ll go for top six. I haven’t done anything but train for this - I did full-time training this year and took a year away from my university agricultural studies. My girlfriend, my mom and dad, and my sister will be there, so it will be a big family experience.

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Vasileios Polymeros (GRE, LM2x, stroke)

In Athens I was third with another partner. Since 2006, we have made this double with Dimitrios Mougios. In Eton we were 9th, in Munich we were 2nd. We trained very hard this year and hope to perform well in Beijing. Because Dimitrios stopped rowing for a couple of years (between 2001 and 2003) we had to build a new boat from the start. I won’t have any family in Beijing with me, except for my wife who will be competing in the lightweight women’s double.

Jakub Hanak (CZE, M4x, 3 seat)

This will be my second Olympics as I was in Athens.

I’m looking forward to the regatta course and the

Olympic Village accommodation, plus the food in the

Athlete’s Village – I have good memories of the food in

Athens. My family was in Athens but Beijing is too

far and difficult for travel.

Lai Bajrang Takhar (IND, M1x)

This is my dream to represent India at the Olympic Games. It’s my first Olympics and a great opportunity for me. I don’t have any good luck charms – I only believe in my own capacity. I will not have family there, but there will be some Indian students

studying in China coming to watch us.

Mirka Knapkova

(CZE, W1x)

I used to believe in things such as good

luck charms or special items when I

was young, but not anymore. Now

I just believe in myself, my strength

and my hard work. I have never been to

China before, so I am looking

forward to the culture, the people

there and this whole country

which is totally different from

our world.

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Daniel Parsons

(CAN, LM4-, stroke)

I will be taking a small

library with me. I can't go on

a rowing trip without a few

good books. Last year at the

World Rowing

Championships and the

pre-worlds camp I read

14 books! After Beijing I

plan on resuming all my

"dangerous" hobbies:

mountain biking, downhill

skiing...

Harald Jaehrling

(IRL, M4-, Head Coach)

I’m looking forward to the racing. It’s a

fantastic regatta with four years

climaxing. The races are the most exciting

part. As an athlete you just see one race, but as

a coach you watch and see all the races, not

just your event – it’s all great. The first thing

for me as a coach is to be prepared with all the

‘maybes’ that can happen. I plan to stay well-

informed and well-prepared.

Mary Whipple (USA, W8+, coxswain)

I eat a lot of Chinese food but I think Chinese food in the States is different. My family will be in Beijing and my boyfriend, Michael Callahan. I have two brothers, Al and David and a twin sister, Sarah, and her husband Mark. My mother and father have come to all of my international races so they are pros at traveling. In Athens my sister said she overheard people commenting how it was strange that I was in the stands and not with my team during racing not knowing it was my twin sister Sarah in the stands, not me!

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Adrian David (AUS, LW2x, Coach)

I hope to cope with the hot and humid climate. Apart from that, I think the competition and the logistics will be of high standard. It’s the pinnacle of the Olympic cycle so everyone is building up. For me, it’s more important what is leading up to it. It’s important how we manage our preparations from now on. As a coach I prepare for the Games by having my athletes stay away from injury and troubles. I’m there to advise and support my athletes to be the best possible. We need to plan for the opposition. There are not a big number of crews, but it’s a good standard of competition for the lightweights.

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He is a man of few words but when they do come, people take note. A private man, he shuns the limelight to the extent that he chooses not to go to his own awards ceremonies – and there have been many of them – citing reasons like commitment to the next day’s training session.

He is a man who talks about the stroke as though it is simple, yet can acutely analyse and find infinitesimally small ways to improve it. He has a passion for rowing so deep that it takes over his life 49 weeks of the year.

Rowing has been part of Tonks’ life for most of his 50­plus years. At 21, he became one of New Zealand’s youngest Olympic medallists winning silver as stroke of the men’s four at

the 1972 Olympic Games. Rowers have been following him ever since.

Before being hired in 2001 as head coach for New Zealand, Tonks was essentially a volunteer ­ an unpaid coach working a nightshift job to allow his days to be free for coaching. During this time Tonks coached sculler Rob Waddell to an Olympic gold medal. He brought Philippa Baker and Brenda Lawson two World Champion titles.

So what keeps this man fresh and excited about rowing? Tonks is a little bemused by this question. “You do sport because you enjoy it,” he says. “It’s not like going to work. You don’t feel like that. It does have its ups and downs but you do it because it’s fun.”

To keep his ideas fresh and moving Tonks reads widely, especially delving onto biographies from a whole range of athletes. His latest read is on marathon runner Lorraine Moller. “I read anything like that, cricket, rugby… it gives me ideas, philosophies. I pull (the ideas) into my coaching, it becomes part of what I say.”

The seasons, Tonks says, revolve around the four­year Olympic cycle. Already he is notching up the number of Olympics that he has been to. At the last two his rowers became Olympic Champions. He doesn’t underestimate the significance of this. “Success or failure at the Olympics stays with you for the rest of your life.” >>

Remaining in the groove – Dick Tonksthere is a certain air of mystery when it comes to New Zealand’s head coach dick tonks. His longest-standing charges, Caroline and Georgina Evers-Swindell, can attest to that. Every morning of the eight years tonks has been coaching them they have had no idea what they would be doing that day. ©

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Tonks doesn’t believe he has softened at all over the years in terms of training intensity, although he is in tune with scientific studies about the necessity of rest and not overdoing it. “I review what I’m doing during the season and go with what’s worked in the past.”

“Every year is different. I can’t keep saying the same thing the same way.”

Tonks is an advocate of stressing the continuous movement, the flow of the stroke. “You can’t concentrate on one part. You’ve got the whole thing flowing on, the stroke goes round and round and round. You can improve the level of parts of the stroke by breaking it down but then you build it up again. Moving the blade and the boat is the most important.” Tonks admits that he does spend some time on the catch. “It is extremely hard to do. If there is a perfect catch and everything moves together, then you can’t do anything wrong.”

When coaching two of the world’s top male single scullers, Drysdale and Waddell. Tonks says there is no difference in his approach. “They are both highly motivated,” he says simply.

Tonks alters the training to suit each individual crew when coaching multiple crews. “If you used the same process for every crew, they wouldn’t do well. Training can suit one crew but not another.” Tonks uses his ability to accurately assess his athletes without asking. “During a season I get a feel for what we need to work on,” says Tonks. “Really at this level it’s just a matter of getting stronger and fitter. You don’t make big changes.”

An overall body balance is important to Tonks. “You don’t want to be too strong in one area. That,” says Tonks, “is the danger of weightlifting and exercising one big muscle.

You need to get a blend and balance of the whole body in the boat. I don’t try to build up one area.”

In the three weeks off a year what will Tonks be doing? “I like to be at home. I like to exercise.” Rowing perhaps? Tonks laughs. “I haven’t rowed for a while. I do some cycling, running and kayaking.”

Does he ever get to clear his mind of rowing? “I don’t think a coach ever does. Once you are in the groove you stay in the groove. You’re focused on where you want to go. I find it hard to go in and out. I stay focused on rowing.” ■ M.S.B.

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FISA is the governing body of the sport of rowing and the oldest international sports federation in the

Olympic movement. Based in Lausanne, the Olympic capital, FISA has 128 member federations worldwide, organises

World Championships, Olympic Regattas and World Cups and promotes all forms of rowing. The opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily the opinions of the FISA

Council. Reprints permitted with acknowledgement of source.

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