1. What inspired you to go to your first rowing practice; was there anything memorable about it?
I wanted to try something new, something I had never done before. I had been on the rowing machine a few times and figured it would be fun to actually try rowing. I've always loved the water and being outside. I literally Googled "rowing" to find a nearby boathouse and lessons in Hartford, Connecticut where I was living and working. That first day of practice was like being a kid again, trying a new sport for the first time. I was so far outside my comfort zone and had no idea what I was doing, but absolutely loved it. Memorable moment? I do remember almost stepping through the bottom of the hull the first time I got into a boat. That was a bit terrifying.
2. Was there a practice, race or other event when you fell in love with the sport, or when you knew you might not be too bad at rowing? When you thought you could make the national team?
It was the fall of 2010 and I had just started rowing at Riverfront Recapture in Hartford, CT with the Master's Program. I had already fallen in love with rowing from day one, but something was just nudging me to see how far I could take the sport. I generally go full throttle with most things I do; I can't help it. So I figured, why not give it a shot and see if I can't make the National Team in a few years? I was still young enough to give it a go, but not young enough to waste any time. It had to be all or nothing if I really wanted to do this.
I attended one of the National Team Identification camps held in Princeton that October. I was the oldest one by at least three or four years--those camps are attended predominantly by college athletes. There were a series of erg tests in the morning and then the group would be cut down to two eights to go out in the afternoon with National Team coaches, Tom Terhaar and Laurel Korholz. I told myself if I made the cut out of the 50 or so athletes there into the 16 that got put in a boat, that I had what it took and I would throw myself into trying to make a National Team. I made the cut and haven't looked back since.
3. Best race/practice, worst race/practice?
I like to think my best race is still to come. To date, the Final from the 2015 World Rowing Cup II is probably one of my favorite races. Ellen and I took silver, just 0.14 seconds from first. We had been having a great regatta and felt confident going into the Final, but knew it would be a battle. From stroke one, we stayed within our boat and just went to work. We were a bit slower off the line than the other crews, but the field was extremely tight. Coming through the 1000m it was six boats across, stroke for stroke. I called us up early and we made this incredible move at the 750m, pulling away from the field with the Kiwis sitting just off our deck. We fought off their impressive sprint, but faltered in our last few strokes to let them slip by. Tough to give it up at the line like that, but it was an excellent piece, no less.
4. Best/Anything you've done in the sport no one knows about?
With my unique entry into the sport, I learned a lot by feel, making mistakes, and just figuring it out. As a result, I've had some epic flips in my single, and in turn, some pretty amazing saves. Best one to date--and actually 2012 Olympian, Kristin Hedstrom witnessed it--was on the estuary at California Rowing Club in Oakland, California. My partner Ellen and I were visiting for a short training week in 2013. It was my first time ever on that body of water and we decided that hopping in singles and doing pieces was the best idea ever. If you've ever rowed that course, you know there are several channel markers and random poles sticking out of the water close to the shore. It was toward the end of a long AT piece and I had (mistakenly) thought I had a good point so just put my head down and started pulling my brains out. It all happened very quickly, but suddenly my boat was halted to a jarring stop as my starboard oar struck an old channel marker and went sailing out of my hand. The handle swung away from me and around the pole, slamming me in the back, while at the same time my left arm instinctively wrapped around the seagull-poop covered pole to hold me upright. Let me paint the picture for you: I am now trapped with the channel maker (that I'm desperately hugging despite the stench) in between the front rigger and my starboard oar behind me. Hedstrom, among others are approaching and I have to quickly decide how to get out of this and finish the race. Without much thought, I let go of the pole to reach behind my back and throw my starboard blade as hard as I can to swing it around the channel marker and within reach to grab. At the same time, I shove away from the pole so that I can clear it and take a stroke. I nailed it. It was pure beauty and a perfectly executed escape.
5. Any/Most important advice for young rowers?
Above all, respect your competitors. This includes your teammates and friends who may be going for the same seat as you, or more obviously, your opponents in the boat next to you. By respecting your competitors, you respect the sport and yourself. You respect the work you're putting in every day because it's worth the time to show up and give it everything you can. Rowing is a beautiful sport because you truly can control how fit you are, how well you row, and how fast you race. Nobody can take that away from you. In the same way, nobody deserves to win--you must earn that by putting in the time and ultimately, crossing the line first. And just because you work hard, try hard, and think you're doing everything you can to be successful, there's a strong chance somebody will cross the line ahead of you every now and again. Acknowledge the loss and then come back and win the next one.
DATE OF BIRTH: 8/24/84
HEIGHT: 6'0”
WEIGHT: 165
BEGAN ROWING: 2010, Riverfront Recapture, GMS
HOMETOWN: Baton Rouge, La.
BIRTHPLACE: Tulsa, Okla.
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Oklahoma City, Okla.
HIGH SCHOOL: Episcopal High School, Baton Rouge
UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION: University of Virginia
GRADUATE EDUCATION: University of Virginia, M.Ed
TRAINING LOCATION: Oklahoma City, Okla.
CURRENT COACH: Jeremy Ivey
CLUB AFFILIATIONS: USRowing Training Center – Oklahoma City, New York Athletic Club
National Teams: SENIOR, 2013-2016
International Results: Won silver in the double sculls at the 2015 World Rowing Cup 2 . . . Finished sixth in the double sculls at the 2014 World Rowing Championships...Won silver in the double sculls at the 2014 World Rowing Cup II…Finished sev-enth in the double sculls at the 2013 World Rowing Championships...Won bronze in the double sculls at the 2013 Samsung World Rowing Cup 3...Won the Senior Quad Sculls and Senior Double Sculls at the 2011 Royal Canadian Henley Regatta...Finished second in the Women's Champ Double at the 2011 Head of the Charles Regatta.
National Results: Won the double sculls at the 2015 National Selection Regatta 1...Won the double sculls at the 2014 National Selection Regatta 2...Won the double sculls at the 2013 National Selection Regatta 2...Finished fourth in the single sculls at the 2013 National Selection Regatta 1...Finished fifth in the single sculls at the 2012 Non-Qualified Small Boat Olympic Trials.
Personal: Meghan was a two-sport athlete (Softball, Volleyball) at the University of Virginia…She picked up rowing post-college while living in Hartford, Conn. and working for ESPN before deciding to train full-time at the USRowing Training Center…Follow her journey at Meghan O'Leary Blog.
Comments | Log in to comment |
row2k's Olympics coverage is brought to you by:
row2k's Olympics coverage is brought to you by:
07/08/2016 12:14:06 PM