*This is part of a short story athlete feature series written for Instagram*
Affectionately known as the novices, the triplets, or the three musketeers,
Belén Reed,
Gabby Kieser, and
Sarah Stormont have become a dynamic trio on the varsity women's rowing team this season.
All three second-year athletes will row in their first major regatta as part of the varsity 8+ boat competing at the Canadian University Rowing Championship (CURCs) this weekend.
While it's unusual to have three second-year novice athletes competing in the varsity 8+, what's even more unusual is that none of them had even picked up an oar before last season.
Despite being new to rowing, all three came with a background in athletics, a high fitness level and the innate ability to suffer—a necessity in rowing.
It's comments from Reed like, "rowing is awesome because you know you've gone your hardest when you almost black out," that make you wonder about rowers.
Reed grew up playing various sports, focusing on cross country and track, Kieser a high-level basketball player and Stormont, an elite soccer player with offers to play collegiately. But when it came to rowing, all three wanted to try something new and be part of a varsity team.
They were recruited (individually, not as a package) for the novice rowing program during UVic's move-in week without knowing anything about the sport and haven't looked back since.
As novice rowers, they spent the entire year waking up at 5:00 a.m. learning to row, learning the technique and improving their aerobic capacity.
"Rowing has been so exciting because every day is new and different; there is so much to learn, which has been really fun," said Stormont.
Entering the 2023-24 season, none of the athletes expected to row varsity this season, not having even raced junior varsity at last year's Brown Cup. But in sport, things can change instantly, and when space opened up in the varsity boat, they each jumped at the opportunity.
"The program that's been built here at UVic, that can develop athletes so quickly, it's actually amazing," said Reed.
Now, the three musketeers will make their varsity debut on the biggest stage in Canadian university rowing with the goal of helping their teammates bring home a national title for a second straight year. And while the pressure is on, the feelings are that of excitement rather than nerves.
"I cannot wait to push myself and see how hard I can go and how much I can hurt," said Kieser.
"As novices, every time we race, we're getting better, and that's just how it is because there is so much to learn. So, basically every time we race it's our best race ever," said Reed.
While it may seem like a lot, considering their first big race will be for a national banner, the overall sentiment is support and encouragement from their teammates.
"The team culture is very, very good; it's the healthiest environment that I've ever been a part of, and that's due to the efforts of the coaches and the strong alumni legacy. Everyone truly supports each other, and everyone wants to see each other succeed," said Stormont.
The Vikes rowing teams head to Burnaby, BC, for the
CURCs which take place Nov. 11-12.
