Personal Statement
When I graduated middle school, rowing was not the sport that I had in mind for the rest of my sports career. I took a learn-to-row camp in the summer before freshman year and was instantly passionate about the sport. Although excited to row, I didn’t realize how hard mentally and physically this sport is, and I hated the first three weeks of rowing on my high school team. Then came winter season and when my mom asked me if I wanted to quit, surprisingly, my answer was no. Through all of the hard workouts and the never-ending rows, I had grown to love the sport and all of the hard work that goes along with it. I bonded with my teammates and we began to work as hard as we could to make ourselves faster and our relationships stronger.
This sport has taught me a lot, about myself and what lengths I can go to when trying to achieve a goal. Learning to have grit and self-control were big building blocks for me in my journey rowing. Once I began to gain these essential rowing skills, I began to see results in my rowing career. I also learned that I never quit, that I have more grit than most and that I care ferociously for my team mates and their success. My goal is to bring these skills with me to a college that can provide the right environment of challenge, rigor and trust. Regarding academics, currently I plan to major in business. I believe the strength, resilience and team building skills I have learned in rowing provide a strong basis from which to build a career, and a happy life.