Back from Sydney, rowers reflect on an 'amazing' experience

Rowers spend their lives trying not to stand out from the crowd. As far as sports go, crew is as unglamorous as they come.

But every four years, rowers are given the chance to stand out in the spectacle of the Olympics — standing alongside the world's other great, but more heralded, athletes.

A number of Princetonian rowers, past and present, had the chance to compete in the 2000 Sydney Games. Though they did not bring home any medals, they earned one of the most prized titles in sports — Olympian.

"The city was taken over by Olympic fever," said senior Tom Herschmiller, who competed in the Canadian men's eight. "We were what everyone was watching — celebrity status for one week of my life."

For senior Paul Teti — who rowed in the U.S.'s lightweight four — the most incredible moment of the Olympics came at the Opening Ceremonies, when all the Olympic athletes gathered together.

"That one night was the single defining moment of my time in Australia," Teti said. "I walked in with people like Marion Jones and the Dream Team and realized they are just like the rest of us.

"I was standing near [Philadelphia '76ers head coach] Larry Brown when the torch went up, and he got choked up, saying, 'This is overwhelming.' I couldn't help but think, 'Yeah, for me it is! I would think he'd be used to it.' That one night renewed my respect for sport."

Teti and Herschmiller found themselves with a unique chance to train for the Olympic teams of their respective countries and took the year off from school to pursue possibly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Both Tigers made the team, along with several Princeton alumni and men's heavyweight coach Curtis Jordan. So instead of heading to New Jersey this September, they headed to Sydney to compete in the 2000 Olympics.

For both these rowers, the trip to the Olympics was a first. For Jordan, it was his fourth trip to the Games, having coached at the Seoul, Barcelona and Atlanta Games.

"The Australians did an awesome job," Jordan said. "The city itself presented a great sight. With the geographic and natural setting, it just worked better."

Teti raced on the U.S. men's lightweight four, which was coached by Jordan. Herschmiller rowed on the Canadian men's heavyweight eight.

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Herschmiller was joined on the Canadian eight by Morgan Crooks '98, and Kevin Cotter '96 was an alternate for Teti's boat.

The U.S. men's eight, which trains in Princeton, also had two Princeton alums taking spots — Chris Aherns '98 and Tom Welsh '99.

Though there were high hopes going in, no Princetonian came away from the Games with a medal. Teti's boat finished sixth in the final, while Herschmiller's finished first in the 'B' final. The U.S. men's eight, which has dominated recent international competition, finished an unsatisfactory fifth in its final.

"Initially, I was pretty upset," Teti said. "I thought we could win a medal. But then I thought, 'I just got sixth place in the Olympics,' and that was pretty impressive."

Each boat had success leading up to the Sydney Games, giving the Tigers reason to believe they could bring home a medal.

The Canadian men's eight did not automatically qualify for the Olympics, but had to race at the European qualifiers in Switzerland in July to make the cut.

Herschmiller and the eight won their race over second-place Croatia, but both teams earned a spot in Sydney. The Croatian boat went on to win the bronze medal in Sydney.

"I thought we could have medaled. We obviously could have since we beat [Croatia in July]," Herschmiller said. "But at the Olympics we just did not have as good a race as we did in Switzerland."

Teti's boat raced at the World Cup in July and won a silver medal — against most of the teams it knew it would be racing against in Australia. On the Olympic course, however, the American boat could not repeat the feat. The U.S. finished last in the final.

"Since we did so well at the World Cup, I had a lot of confidence," Teti said. "I thought this was going to be my turn, after I had lost to those guys so many times."

But things did not work out as Teti hoped.

"What makes the Olympics special is that there is finality," Teti said. "You train years for one race — and it's not like college — you can't say, 'This is what I did right, this is what I did wrong. Next week I'll do better.' The results are final — for the next four years."

After the racing was over, the athletes had time to relax and enjoy being at the Olympics, rather than focusing on their competition.

Both Teti and Herschmiller went to as many other events as they could and met as many fellow Olympians as possible, in order to soak in the Olympic experience.

"I met Carl Lewis at the Canadian bar," Herschmiller said. "That was pretty incredible. I ended up talking to his brother for quite a while."

Both Tigers emphasized their interactions with other athletes as important parts of their Olympic experience.

"I used to watch the Olympics on TV as a kid," Herschmiller said. "But being in the [Olympic] Village and getting to know the other athletes really brought it closer to home. I was cheering for people I knew — I knew what they'd been through to get to this point, and that really had an impact on me."

"At the Closing Ceremonies, we could walk around the infield and talk to all the other athletes," Teti said. "It was like the party after a win, magnified times a million. It was amazing to realize that the other athletes were just as interested to hear about what you were doing there, too. It just hit me then — I realized I was at the Olympics."