Rosa Millard

Club CUBC Women

Year of Birth 2001

Hometown London

Nationality British

College Trinity Hall

Undergrad/Graduate Undergraduate

Year 1st

What are you studying? Linguistics

What is the most interesting part of your course? Do you have any professional or academic plans after? I enjoy syntax, language acquisition and the Slavonic languages.

Future ambitions? I’m unsure of anything specific but I’d definitely like to use some of my analytical skills in the international arena.

How do you balance rowing and academic life? By working efficiently and by giving myself a lot of rest time as well, because you can’t work if your body is tired.

When did you start rowing, and why? I started about 10 years ago as a cox because my dad needed someone to cox his crew. After that I just got more and more involved. I committed fully at about 13.

What was your first club? Lea Rowing Club.

What is your favourite part of rowing for Cambridge? The idea of the mission. It’s very cool that everything you work for is for one race, and the build up for months preceding the Boat Race is very intense and interesting. It is a very unique environment, it is highly competitive yet the people are so friendly. I do like the number of people who bake and bring cakes, it makes for happy rowers.

What’s your rowing history, and what has been your biggest achievement so far? I was a cox for three or four years before starting rowing. Then I rowed at my local club (Lea Rowing Club) until I was 17 when I moved to Tideway Scullers. I would say my biggest achievement has been either representing Great Britain in Paris at the GB v France match in 2018, or getting to the Saturday of the Diamond Jubilee at Henley Royal.

Your favourite race so far? Probably my first ever singles race which was J12 1x at Lea Spring. I was racing a boy over 500m. I was so nervous, but then I won and it felt pretty good.

Do you have any race day habits or superstitions? I suppose jelly babies are my go to hard erg/race food. I also have a pair of lucky socks.

Your sporting idol? I wouldn’t say I ever had one person who I idolised. I suppose I have always been inspired by the athletes around me.

If you could have any sportsperson in your crew, who would it be? Helen Glover, she seems pretty cool.

What gets you through a tough session? Do you have a mantra, rituals? Now I think about Barnes Bridge and that last 1km of the Boat Race and winning. But before I used to think about how one of my first coaches used to say ‘everyone is hurting’ everyone is going through the same pain and that kind of motivates you with a sense of common purpose.

Any hobbies, other interests outside rowing? I used to swim to a high level. Now, as well as spending time with my friends, I like to paint with watercolour.

How do you motivate yourself and your teammates, especially with Covid restrictions? Again, I like to think about the idea of common goal and the mission. Everyone is going through the same thing and we all want to win.