2014 Junior World Rowing Championships

Since beginning rowing, one goal has been on my mind, the Olympics. One recent stepping stone towards this goal was the chance to race at the Junior World Championships. This step became a reality after a year of hard training and competition which led me to Canada’s junior national team trials.  I was named to the men’s pair alongside my Brentwood coach, Ms. Robyn Amiel, and my partner, Jacob, from Victoria.  After the first week of training, it was clear how much time and effort was required to be a contender on the world stage. Training progressed and the extremely difficult month was an eye opener.  The reality of representing my country did not really set in until we arrived at the airport. When our small but strong team of 7 athletes and a support team of 7 adults landed in Belgium, I soon realized it was hardly a vacation.  The training week went on just as it did back home, and before I knew it we were off to Hamburg, Germany for the regatta. When we arrived at the regatta site it was a dream come true. Jacob had already been to the world championships last year, but for Robyn and me, it was our first experience and it meant a lot to both of us. We see people compete all the time, but to actually be there watching each country doing their own thing was both fascinating and exciting.  When the first day of racing came, it took a huge amount of energy just to stay calm and try to not worry. We went through the regular routine that we had engraved into our heads and finally we pushed off the dock. As Jacob and I locked into the gates up at the start line, the announcer began the start sequence as usual, but it was the longest few minutes of my life.  Coming third in the heat, we comfortably moved through to the quarterfinals by skipping the repechage and getting a day to practice and rest. The day of the quarterfinals was the most nerve-raking for me because it was a clear cut off: if crews made a mistake and weren’t able to qualify for the A and B semi-finals, the best a crew could finish was 13th.  We comfortably came 3rd again and qualified for the A and B semi-finals. The day of the semi-final had the same goal and expectation that we had throughout racing, which was to qualify for the A final and have a shot at the podium. Unfortunately, after a mediocre performance, we missed out on our opportunity to race for the medals but we were given one more chance to show what we could do in the B final.  The day of the B final was different than the past three racing days. We knew that something had to change from the previous day’s semi-final, so we arrived with a new mentality and slightly different plan. Happily, we concluded our last race at Worlds with our best performance and even though there wasn’t a medal around our necks, we knew that we had done the best we could.  With every race the competition became immensely more difficult and the B final was the most painful 7 minutes of my rowing career. Each race set higher standards that gave me a lot of knowledge to take away from the regatta.  When racing concluded, we were proud with our result and happy that we represented Canada well, not to mention that it was Rowing Canada’s most successful Junior World Championships in nearly 20 years. We came home with silver medals in the women’s pair and men’s single. Racing at the World Championships gave me a fantastic insight into the work and determination that’s required. The regatta gave me a valuable experience and exposure to the high-calibre of rowers out there, and what’s required to be an imminent threat to the competition. It was a long and exhausting journey that further carved a path towards my goal of being an Olympian and it is one experience that I will remember forever. Thanks to Ms. Amiel for all of her coaching. Now it’s time to get back on the water in Mill Bay! Elliot R, Rogers ‘15