Some 11 years later she is still here and supporting Kiwi high performance athletes in her role as an HPSNZ Performance Life Coach based in Cambridge.
Tina shares her Olympic experiences and insights in the eighth of our series featuring HPSNZ Olympians or Paralympians.
HPSNZ
Tell us about your Olympic experiences.
Tina
The Olympic experience is big. It is a giant circus compared with World Championships – everything is on a bigger scale.
I found it a very nuanced, complex and emotional experience. It was amazing and hard.
My selection happened very late; only eight weeks out from the London Olympics. It also included a change of boat class. Rather than being in the World Champs gold medal winning women’s quad crew I had been in, teams were changed, and I found myself in the women’s double. I was gutted but at the same time still grateful to be representing my country at the Olympics. It is a pretty exclusive club and a cool community to be part of.
For a German rower, being in London was reasonably comfortable as we did a lot of European regattas on a regular basis. The UK was running lots of events in the lead up to the Games and being based in Europe meant we got to go to some of those. I remember attending an event at the British Embassy where many of us athletes had a chance to have a chat with Prince Harry who was there to promote the Games.
One of the things I’ve noticed here in New Zealand is that the Kiwi team is much tighter because we are so far away. Also the team is quite a bit smaller, so athletes from different sports tend to know each other which is really nice.
HPSNZ
Of all the experiences, what was the most memorable one?
Tina
I have several memories that stand out. Walking into the boat park for the first time was amazing. An Olympic boat park looks quite different – it’s more colourful, everything was covered in the Olympic designs, there was branded carpet on the pontoons, the Olympic motto “Inspire a Generation” was displayed on the boat house, and so on. I realised then that this really would reach so many people. I think for the first time, I felt the combination of the sense of privilege and responsibility that comes with being an Olympian.
The German House for London 2012 was a cruise ship. We had the option to go home on that ship and lots of athletes chose to do that. Those were a really special one and a half days with the whole German team together after the Games. I’ll never forget coming down the river into Hamburg. There were boats of all sizes coming to meet us with “Welcome Home” signs and flags flying. The riverbank was lined with people, some waving sheets out of hotel windows, police and fire trucks with their sirens going, and we were led to the dock by a firefighting boat with the traditional grand hose spray. So yeah, that is a special memory.
HPSNZ
Given what you know now, what, if anything, would you have done differently in your Olympic campaign?
Tina
I was the strongest I’d ever been going into the Olympics and I can’t fault how I performed. Maybe I could have had more courage to have some difficult conversations around that selection but I was very young. It’s something I’ve taken into my role as a Performance Life Coach with HPSNZ trying to help young athletes to develop those skills and to build relationships with a wider team before they need them.
HPSNZ
How different do you think the Olympic experience is today from when you competed?
Tina
There are two key differences I’ve noticed. Firstly is the increase in social media. It simply wasn’t a big factor in 2012. The Covid backdrop in Tokyo was also so different to our experience in London where there was a lot of opportunities to connect with athletes from different countries, and lots of contact with fans which was great.
HPSNZ
How does your experience as an Olympic athlete contribute and help you in your current role with HPSNZ?
Tina
I guess I know what it takes to get to the very top level, I get it. I know it’s hard and I also know what a privilege it is to be able to do this. So, I try to help athletes see the big picture. Organising your life around high performance training can be pretty challenging at times, so I try to support them with practical tools to manage that.
HPSNZ
If you were to give a current Olympic or Paralympic athlete one piece of advice for their Paris 2024 campaign, what would it be?
Tina
Remember to look up every now and then and in Paris look around. And think about how cool what you are doing is.
