Rowena's Story
Fast Facts
Sport: Rowing
Event: Women’s Quadruple Scull
Olympic History: Tokyo 2020 (bronze)
Coach: John Keogh (Head Coach), Tom Westgarth, Ellen Randell
Highlights: Bronze medal at Tokyo 2020, winning silver medals at the 2015 and 2017 U23 World Championships
Year Born: 1995
Born: Basingstoke
Junior Club: Mosman Rowing Club (Mosman, NSW)
About Rowena
Rowena Meredith first competed internationally at the 2015 U23 World Championships and won a silver medal alongside Georgie Gotch, Leah Saunders and Tessa Carty.
The next year, Meredith joined Rowing Australia’s National Training Centre, where under the tutelage of John Keogh, Tom Westgarth and Ellen Randell, she became a regular fixture in Australia’s Senior Quadruple Sculls Teams, highlighted perhaps most notably by a second place finish in the 2017 World Cup Rowing 2.
Meredith won another silver medal at the 2017 U23 World Championships followed by appearances - and podium finishes - at the World Rowing Cups 2 and 3. Meredith reprised this role throughout 2018 and 2019.
She made her Olympic debut at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games as a member of the Women's Quadruple Scull that won a bronze medal.
Having qualified their boat late for the Games by virtue of winning the Final Olympic Qualification Regatta, the crew faced a tough field and earned their position in the Final the hard way, via the repechage after they finished fourth in their heat.
In the repechage, the crew came up against USA, Italy, Great Britain and New Zealand in a tough race that required a top two finish to progress to the A-Final. The Olympic debutants crossed the line first and booked their position in the Olympic Final.
The Aussies maintained fifth position for the first 1500-metres of the Final but their composure and boat speed in tough conditions pushed them through to take the bronze, ahead of crews from Italy, Germany and the Netherlands.
The result came during the ‘the hour of power,’ a moment in time when Australia’s Men’s and Women’s Fours stormed home for gold and the Men’s and Women’s Quadruple Sculls claimed bronze. The four medals won by Australian rowing crews, along with swimmer Ariarne Titmus' gold medal in the 200 metres freestyle, contributed to the most successful period in the history of the Australian Olympic Team.
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