1. What inspired you to go to your first rowing practice; was there anything memorable about it?
My aunt and uncle have been involved in outrigger canoeing for a very long time and at the beginning of my senior year of high school, my aunt suggested I try rowing. She said that since I was tall, I might be good at it. I didn't even know we had rowing on the west coast. I thought it was an east coast sport, like lacrosse. In my first practice at Marina Aquatic Center, I distinctly remember not understanding the concept of keeping the blades on the water while sitting out. We had two boats side by side, and the drag caused by the blades seemed like such a hindrance to us winning! That's when I realized that these big boats were actually really tippy and I better keep the blade on the water to set the boat.
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?
In 2014, I took 12 (alright, 11) continuous strokes in the single where both my blades were off the water. That's when I knew!
3. Best race/practice, worst race/practice?
There are a lot of good and bad ones. I have to say there are three races that stand out to me. First, winning Olympic Pair Trials, for the obvious reasons. Also, winning IRAs at Cal in 2010. It wasn't a perfect year, and we were underdogs in the final, but we always had a positive attitude and a belief that we could win. And finally, our Cal Class Day race in 2007. We were the first Freshmen to win this race in 50 years. That was the first time I ever felt the real elation of winning a rowing race.
4. Best/Anything you've done in the sport no one knows about?
My senior year at Berkeley, my teammate Olivier and I really didn't want to lose the IRAs in the last 500m like we did the year before, so we decided to sprint the last 30 seconds of every erg workout we did that year. Unless we were doing a very specifically instructed rate-capped workout, we stuck to the plan and sprinted at the end of every single erg workout. It was cool because a lot of other guys started joining in on it and it became a thing. In the end, we won the IRAs in the sprint. I'm not saying, I'm just saying…
5. Any/Most important advice for young rowers?
Keep telling yourself that pulling hard is fun. At some point, you'll understand.
DATE OF BIRTH: 1/20/89
HEIGHT: 6’5”
WEIGHT: 213
BEGAN ROWING: Marina Aquatic Center
HOMETOWN: North Hills, Calif.
BIRTHPLACE: North Hills, Calif.
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Princeton, N.J.
HIGH SCHOOL: Demirdjian High School
UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION: University of California, Media Studies and Mass Communications, 2010
TRAINING LOCATION: Princeton, N.J.
CURRENT COACH: Kris Korzeniowski
CLUB AFFILIATIONS: USRowing Training Center – Princeton
National Teams: SENIOR: 2010-2011, 2013-2014, 2016, Pan Am – 2015; UNDER 23: 2009-2010; JUNIOR:2007
International Results: Won bronze in the eight at the 2015 Pan American Games...Finished fourth in the straight four at the 2015 Pan American Games...Won gold in the eight at the 2014 World Rowing Cup II...Won bronze in the eight at the 2013 World Rowing Championships...Won gold in the eight at the 2013 Samsung World Rowing Cup 3...Won silver in the eight at the 2013 Samsung World Rowing Cup 1...Finished second in the eight at the 2011 E.On Hanse Cup...Finished eighth in the eight at the 2011 World Rowing Championships...Finished fourth in the eight at the 2011 Rowing World Cup stop in Lucerne...Reached the semifinals of the Grand Challenge Cup at the 2011 Henley Royal Regatta...Finished fourth in the pair with coxswain at the 2010 World Rowing Championships...Won silver in the eight at the 2010 World Rowing Under 23 Championships...Finished second in the four at the 2009 World Rowing Under 23 Championships...Finished fifth in the eight at the 2007 World Rowing Junior Championships...Won the Temple Challenge Cup at the 2007 Henley Royal Regatta.
National Results: Won the four at the 2015 Pan American Games Trials ... Finished second in the pair at the 2014 National Selection Regatta 2...Won gold in the eight at the 2013 USRowing National Championships...Won the pair with coxswain at the 2010 World Rowing Championship Trials...Won the varsity eight at the 2010 IRA Championships...Finished second in the varsity eight at the 2009 IRA Championships...Finished third in the varsity eight at the 2008 IRA Championships...Won the intermediate eight and finished second in the senior eight at the 2007 USRowing Club National Championships...Won the freshman eight at the 2007 IRA Championships.
Personal: Nareg was named the Pac-10 Conference Rowing Athlete of the Year in 2010...Nareg's most memorable sporting achievement was winning the varsity eight at the 2010 IRA Championships...He lists his personal hero as Barack Obama.
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