REFLECTIONS
Grace Prendergast
NEW ZEALAND
EVENT W2-, W8+
PLACING GOLD, SILVER
Within the team we've been talking about how different our build up was for this Olympics. Normally we race internationally and spend a long time away from home; we are overseas for about three months.
Obviously, the last two years have been very different; our team trained at home in Karapiro. There is something to be said for a team that is so competitive with each other, and it was enough competition to get us across the line.
I know, for us, in the pair, we've probably had the best racing this season – leading up into the Olympics – that we've ever had. Every race had three or four crews finish within two seconds.
And close racing builds confidence.
Sometimes we get that overseas, but sometimes not.
It was great how much each of our crews pushed each other. As soon as you have one crew trying to push the level up then everyone chases them. It worked well. Although before we raced at the Games there was the thought that everyone could be going slow!
In 2019 we doubled up purely to qualify the eight, we never expected to double up at the Olympics. We enjoyed rowing with the girls and managed to win. It is hard to stumble across a boat that really clicks but once that happened it prompted the thought of doing it in Tokyo. It was still a long process to decide: was it was too risky, were we biting off more than we could chew, might we come away with two fourth places?