17 Dec 2018
Jordan Parry (NZL)
Rising Star – December 2018
Former under-23 men’s quadruple sculls world champion Jordan Parry has stepped into the big league this year. The 23-year-old New Zealand sculler has had his first season in the elite senior level, coming fifth in the men’s quad at the World Rowing Cup in Linz-Ottensheim and winning the B-final at the World Cup in Lucerne. He tells us about the change and the hunger for more gold.
Winning gold at the World-Under 23s last year was…yeah, good! A relief from the couple years prior in 2015 and 2016 where we placed in silver position. After those two years I only gained hunger for what we could do better.
One of the big differences stepping up to the elite international class is… the duration of the campaign. It leaves little room for missed meals or late nights because you will pay for it later in the season. Another point would have to be the sheer knowledge at your disposal – everything you need to know you have access to through our awesome specialists at Rowing NZ. I have gained a lot from what they’ve taught me yet something to always note is no matter how much you learn don’t forget your roots of digging deep and pushing like an ignorant meathead.
My crew mates from 2017 have separated… but we still reminisce about the memories we made that campaign. They all attend university (two in America) but I’m happy to see them smashing it out in the rowing world even if it’s not priority number one. The crew I was with over this 2018 campaign were already good mates so to be working with them was super easy and enjoyable.
My role in the quad was… the undisputed ‘hype’ man. Two seat. I enjoyed the heck out of this job. But I also contributed to the rhythm connection of seats three and one.
In our New Zealand summer racing we… mix it up a bit with combinations from our men’s double, quad, and this year, singles. We race in all sculling disciplines over our summer.
One of the NZ races in my sights is… February 14th 2019, New Zealand Nationals. I will race the men’s single and the men’s double.
My next big goal is…an open men’s national title in a sculling boat class.
My long term goal is… to push my boundaries beyond what I thought possible.
My favourite race venue… The overall winner for me is Lake Ruataniwha, Twizel, New Zealand. The sentimental winner for me would be a tie with Plovdiv, Bulgaria and Lake Karapiro, NZ.
Ergs?… Yeah good! Don’t love them, don’t hate them.
I’m mostly a fulltime rower but… I do casual hours as a teacher aide at the local Cambridge Middle School along with part-time study with Massey University.
During the weekends or a long break I’ll be… asleep, surfing that fresh nar nar, and sailing the Mowai.
At Christmas I’ll… head to the beach bach [house] in Papamoa. I’ll be with my parents and brother Mark. Probably a lot of beach volleyball and swims.