Thoughts from the past

Xeno Müller, Class of 1995

When I was a freshman the first four or five days, the flood lights outside the buildings that were yellow, the humidity in the air at the end of the summer, I was in sensory overdrive. I was so excited to be there, because I finally found a home for me where people know what it means to hold an oar and to just train on a daily basis.

I was called the “fuzzy foreigner.” In my teammates’ defense, they got a Xeno Müller at age 19 or 20, probably really full of color. Colors that I was wearing were normal in Europe to train in, but the colors that they were wearing were probably darker colors. I was friends with the underdogs on the team, guys like David Monk and Sari Awad.

I remember sitting at the starting line my very first race as a freshman in the first freshman boat. Who else are we racing but Harvard. We are sitting at the stake, and I swear to you, I thought that our boat was vibrating. I want to illustrate to you that I was sitting in a boat on a race course, just itching to rip off that stake boat and to annihilate that boat from Harvard. Because when they showed up they were so shiny and clean and so well-dressed. We know that Brown is grunge, and that the guys wear two mismatching socks. I just remember sitting at that catch thinking, “O.K., these guys, I can count on. And we’re just going to destroy the other crew.” And we did.

I think I learned of different social dynamics and immediately became tolerant; because what was shown to me at Brown was how to be tolerant. I was really a sponge when I came to Brown. I really enjoyed having different views of life all around me, the different perspectives on sexual orientation, on rich people or poor people. And I’m not sure that another school would have delivered that experience to me in the same way.

When we rowed against Navy in 1993, in Camden New Jersey at the I.R.A.s, the Midshipmen were wearing shirts that said, “Made in America.” We had a couple of non-Americans rowing for Brown, and rubbing my nose in the fact that I was a foreigner really provided me with some motivation. I love this country. If I could be an American I would be. (Now I am as of February 2004)

My coach told me before the Atlanta Games final, “Xeno, this is your first Olympic final. Half of the field here is going to get an Olympic medal. If you’re in fifth place, go for fourth. If you’re in fourth, go for third. If you’re in third, go for second.” The hardest thing for me was to be patient until the final 90 strokes of the race. I remember counting the boats behind me in the last 250 meters. I didn’t want to make a mistake I had made as a 15-year-old in Switzerland. I started rowing with more torque – not with a higher stroke rate, but with more torque.

If Steve and Scott hadn’t affected me the way they did, I wouldn’t be the person I am today emotionally.

Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.

My friend Rob Waddell, former indoor rowing world champion and Olympic gold medalist:

Rob Waddell is keeping mum on a possible rowing comeback.

The 32-year-old Waikato sporting icon recently returned to Tamahere after eight months as a crew member with Team New Zealand in Valencia.

He was delighted to report he and wife Sonia are expecting their third child - but far more reserved when asked to comment on speculation he's eyeing a rowing comeback for next year's Beijing Olympics.

"No comment," said Waddell, men's single sculls winner at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, when pressed. "Give us a break, I've only just got back.

"I recently had my first scull in eight years, and really enjoyed it. But it was as much about getting out and enjoying Lake Karapiro again. It was like John Walker going for a run."

Waddell was also quick to point out that after working as the strongman grinder in two America's Cup campaigns he now weighs 120kg - 20kg more than in 2000.

And yet he did not reject the Olympics notion out of hand. "I'm still contractually with Team NZ, but that's the best I can give you."

He said he had "plenty of ideas, but nothing concrete. That just about sums up everything at the moment."

Meanwhile, Waddell was philosophical about not being able to pip America's Cup holders Alinghi in the Valencia finals.

"You just never really knew where you were going to be against Alinghi.

"We threw everything at it, and I thought we were sailing really well apart from a couple of mistakes.

"On the boat it felt like we were starting to win all those first exchanges . . . but I just felt we were up against slightly faster hardware."

The Waddells' third child is due in November.

Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.

good story about weight loss thanks to rowing

Rowing to the rescue; daniel klassen goes from overweight student to scholarship rower

BERNIE PUCHALSKI
Sports - Thursday, July 19, 2007 @ 09:00

No one could have anticipated Daniel Klassen's rowing career.

"I had never played any sports and I was grossly overweight," the 17-year-old said. "The rowing team needed one more person to fill an eight and I guess they were pretty desperate."

He was a Grade 11 student at Eden High School at the time and the clincher to join came in the form of a little feminine persuasion.

"The coach got his daughter to flutter her eyelashes at me and convince me to join."

He loved the sport at first stroke.

"It was great. Our team wasn't too competitive, so I didn't feel too out of place. I started dropping weight and getting competitive so I kept going."

His weight loss was the most dramatic change - he dropped to 215 pounds from 280 pounds.

"If you saw pictures of me, it's ridiculous. I have people who don't recognize me any more.
"

It's no stretch to suggest rowing has altered his life mentally and physically.

"Everything I do now is more or less a product of rowing: the school I'm going to; what I do with my time; my girlfriend; it has completely changed my life."

Last year, Klassen was unofficially turned down for a scholarship at Princeton because he was too young, so he bided his time this past year working, studying part time at Brock University and training with Ridley Graduate Boat Club coach Jack Nicholson and fellow rower David Wakulich.

In the winter, Klassen and Wakulich worked out with weights and ergometers. When spring came, they were on the water twice a day.

"That was a huge, huge period of growth for me." Klassen said.

Overcoming his lack of sports background was Klassen's biggest challenge.

"Physiologically, he had a very poor aerobic base and that's where we have made the biggest gains," Nicholson said.

Klassen has also learned the training regime required to become an elite rower.

"It's learning how to pace yourself," Nicholson said. "He's never had to go to the wall and back and beyond, but he's going to be a good one.

"We'll keep him."

Klassen's rapid improvement garnered him a scholarship from Yale and he entered the Junior Speed Orders (national team trials) in Welland brimming with optimism.

He didn't have a great race in the A singles final - he placed sixth out of six boats - but his performance was good enough to earn a spot in the CanAmMex training camp and regatta this week in St. Catharines.

"I wasn't distraught over my results from the time trials," he said. "I was hoping to do well, but every race is different."

The CanAmMex camp, which rotates between Canada, the United States and Mexico, is the first international step for junior rowers with national team aspirations.

Klassen describes the camp as the best of both worlds.

"I get to race internationally with new coaches and teammates, but at the same time, I can still stick with Ridley, which has been really good to me, and I can still race Henley."

CanAmMex participants are eligible to compete in the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta while junior national team members are ineligible.

Brie-Anne Breton, Katrina Pichelli, Jenna Burke, Jill Stark, Ian Norton, Ben Cushnie from the South Niagara Rowing Club are also taking part in the camp.

The camp started Sunday night and Klassen will be staying with the team during the week at the Brock University residences.

Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.

Winning gold or winning silver...

In case you would wonder which I believe was my best Olympic final...

Winning was great and my effort had the desired outcome, BUT:

It is my silver medal at the 2000 Olympics which required 100% of my mental and physical power. The reason is simple. I was racing really well for 1500 meters until 500 meters to go. At 1499 meters to go I was certain that I could outsprint Rob. Mentally, I had been blocking out my cold which I was carrying around all week long. Then in the last 90 seconds I blew up. I was hammered by one crisis after another. First knowing that my strength was gone, second I lost gold, thrid that my five second lead on 3 and 4 dwindled down to nothing. It was the voices of my coaches who over the years kept telling me to beware of the final sprint between 3 and 4 during which 1 and 2 might be gobbled up. Those last 90 seconds were the hardest of my life, I did not want to leave without a medal and I needed to beat Hacker and Porter.

All the best,

XENO

Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.

Great rowers list!

Xeno and Nareg at the Iron Oarsman



Hello everyone.

I need to mention some of our rowers have gone places!

Nareg won IRA with the CAL freshmen eight. He also won the British Henley Royal Regatta and is off to China with junior national team.

Christina, Alex, and Anastacia, from Long Beach Junior Crew won the junior national championship in the women's eight! Congratulations to their coach Alfredo.

Dana, former student at Boston College came to us three weeks ago and thanks to our training is now a UCLA rower.

Congratulations to all.

XENO

Xeno Muller, Olympic gold and silver medalist, indoor rowing, rowing technique.