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.
United States
The defending silver medallists at both the Olympic Games and the world championships, the selectors at USRowing have placed many of their most experienced internationals in the blue ribband event. Six of the crew raced at Tokyo, four of whom were in the silver medal-winning crew and will be hungry to repeat that success. With the unique economics of being an elite athlete in the United States, the crew convened relatively recently with athletes having raced across a variety of boat classes and not at all throughout the shortened Olympiad. As a crew, they raced at the World Rowing Cup Regatta in Lucerne, placing third behind the Canadians and the British but under the watchful eye of Jesse Foglia, they will endeavour to close the gap and will be expecting to compete for medals.
Australia
Since arriving in Europe, the Australian women’s eight has not particularly impressed. Last season ended with a world championship bronze, but they are yet to finish ahead of another Olympic crew. In Lucerne, they finished in fourth place, significantly behind three of the top contenders, while in Poznan the competition included an effective national ‘2V’ of Australian athletes racing in other boat classes as well as two development boats. With the long-distance travel taking such a toll, it is likely we haven’t seen the best of this crew, but I would be surprised if they were to end up with a medal next week.
Italy
At the end of last season, the Italian eight missed out on Olympic qualification by just over two seconds, but they resumed the season back with a vengeance. With only one change from the world championship lineup last year, the crew opened their season on home water, claiming the victory at the Varese World Rowing Cup, holding off a British crew who had doubled up from racing in the fours earlier in the event. However, at the European championships, they were a little more humbled, finishing third in a four-boat field. The crew had enough speed to qualify through the ‘last chance regatta’ with relative ease, but any significant success will be reliant on them being able the channel the form of Varese – a feat I have doubts they can achieve.
Denmark
In one of the closest races of the Final Olympic Qualification Regatta, the Danish eight squeezed out the Chinese crew by less than a quarter of a second. Denmark are country you do not often associate with success in the larger boats, with this being the first time they have qualified a women’s eight for the Olympic Games. This crew, who are very young in comparison to their opposition, has been racing together just for the season as they finished sixth of seven behind the Italian development crew before making the cut in Lucerne. This will be the first major championship for many of these athletes so getting ahead of any of these crews would be a great achievement.
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