Team Talks

Matt Wells is one of the most successful scullers in the GB Rowing squad, having won medals at junior, under-23 and senior level. After finishing fourth, though, at the World Championships how will he use his extensive experience to prepare for Beijing? He talked to TEAMTALK about the past, present and future.“We’re like chalk and cheese”, is Matt’s first comment on his relationship with fellow double–scull medallist Steve Rowbotham, with whom Matt won three World Cup medals this summer in the Siemens–backed double scull.

For most rowers, winter training is something to dread as cold weather and long training sessions make for an unpleasant combination. So how do our British squad rowers deal with it? TEAMTALK asked Jess Eddie, one of the more experienced members of the women’s eights group.

The answer, it seems, lies partially with the training group’s sense of fun and family. “It’s such a fun group of people. We’re all based in London and to get to where we have, we basically all have the same frame of mind.

One of the rising stars of GB Rowing is Bill Lucas, who, aged just 19, has already competed at senior world cup level and is a graduate of the ARA’s World Class Start Scheme, sponsored by Siemens.  At the last World Cup in Lucerne, Lucas raced in the men’s double scull, which made the B-Final – quite an achievement for someone who only took up rowing five years ago.

Nathaniel Reilly O’Donnell, at 19, is already a reigning World Junior Champion in the four and he captained the British squad which travelled to the Olympic Youth Festival in Australia in January this year, where he won two golds and a silver.

He has just been selected for the British Under-23 men’s eight.

TEAMTALK caught up with him at the team training camp to talk about the two big influences on his life: sport and family.