How do you define greatness? A mind-bending feat that surpasses expectation and rationality? A moment of authentic surprise that inverts the weight of pressing odds? Or perhaps an incision in the linear unfurling of your heart?
In sport, we are quick to anoint greatness upon each other. A performance that impresses us is often bestowed the virtue of greatness before it can even truly be understood. It is easy to attach brilliance onto bravery and boldness but sometimes the two should not be conflated. True greatness should combine mastery, magnanimity and more than a hint of magic.
The Olympic Games is our ultimate magic show. A procession of truly elite talent, operating at the pinnacle of their sport and thrust forward into a limelight fostered by four years of relative translucency. These two weeks are stitched into the very fabric of competition, dating back to the lore of Ancient Greece, and have transcended the politics of modern society to become the ultimate marker in sporting excellence. To win Olympic Gold gives you immortality of a rare and timeless specification – your story will be perpetuated forevermore, carried forward by the whispers of generations to come, who too aim to climb those sacred steps and join this club of champions. Emerging over the horizon, this time in the blue and red hue of palatial Paris, we are ready for the very fastest in rowing to be crowned.
Step forward, my friends – The Olympic Games have come.
The Stats
Country
Netherlands
Crew Names
Marloes Oldenburg
Hermine Drenth
Tinka Offereins
Benthe Boonstra
Average Age
30 years
Olympic Record
N/A
2024 Competitive Record
World Rowing Cup 1: 3rd (W4-)
World Rowing Cup 2: 2nd (W4-)
World Rowing Cup 3: N/A
European Championships: N/A
The Profile
The Dutch are the reigning world champions in this event and have had a consistent line-up for the last couple of seasons. Their win in Belgrade was, perhaps, against the run of form as they’d “only” managed bronze at the Europeans and were fourth in Lucerne. They showed that they could produce the result when it mattered though. None of these athletes have raced at the Olympics before – they all narrowly missed out when trying to qualify the eight for Tokyo. In 2022, the Dutch doubled-up in the coxless four and eight, winning silver in both. This season, they’ve had some decent results ,taking third at the opening World Rowing Cup behind two GB boats and then taking the runners-up spot behind the no.1 GB boat in Lucerne.
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