Four young rowing stars have today been named in the Australian team to compete at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore this August.

Born on the day of the Opening Ceremony of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Olympia Aldersley was named after the birthplace of the Games. With her selection as a member of the women’s pair, Aldersey, 17, is now one step closer to fulfilling her dream of being an Olympian.

“It’s a dream come true,” Aldersley said of her selection.

“To be able to represent your country at such a big international event and experience the first ever World Youth Olympic Games is something that I am definitely looking forward to.”

Aldersey will be joined in Singapore by fellow South Australian Emma Basher.

In the women’s pair final at the 2010 Rowing Australia National Selection Trials, Basher and Aldersey produced a nail-biting finish to win the race by 0.9 of a second.

West Australia’s Matt Cochran and David Watts won the junior men’s pair final, finishing two and half lengths clear of the field to secure their tickets to the Games.

Along with Aldersley and Basher, Watts competed at the 2009 Australian Youth Olympic Festival where he won a bronze medal as part of the men’s coxless four.

Watts was a talented swimmer before being identified for rowing by the West Australian Institute of Sport’s talent identification program.

“I was picked by the Institute to try rowing, and it turned out I was pretty good at it so stuck with it,” Watts said.

“I’m really happy to have qualified for the Games and am looking forward to the experience. It’s a great building block to the Olympics and I hope we can get a good result.”

All four rowers will contest the World Junior Rowing Championships in the Czech Republic in early August which will see them peak for the Youth Olympics.

Rowing at the Youth Olympic Games will take place over a 1000 metre course at the newly created Marina Reservoir. Rowing is open to athletes aged between 16 and 18 and there will be four rowing events contested: junior men and junior women’s single scull and junior men and junior women’s pairs. Australia will compete in the pairs events only.

Alice Wheeler
AOC