Page 8 - Southwell School Chronicle December 2018

THE CHRONICLE
OLD GIRL FEATURE
SAM VOSS, WORLD CHAMPION AOLD GIRL, 2005-2009
fter breaking her ankle severely just days before the 2017 Under 23
trials, it is an incredible achievement that Sam Voss is back rowing at all,
let alone competing for New Zealand and winning at international level.
The major injury setback has fueled Sam’s desire and determination to win even more and it saw her selected to compete in the single scull at
the August World Rowing Under 23 Championships in Poznan, Poland.
Travelling with the team, and arriving ten days before racing commenced, Sam was able to experience all the different weather conditions the venue could provide. This aided her well moving into racing, when conditions changed for nals day from a headwind to a tailwind. After not needing to
sprint in her heats or semi- nal, Sam was able to save herself for the big race. Competing against the world’s top rowers, Sam took the lead, from American Emily Kallelz, as they passed the 1500m mark. She then stretched out her lead to a length, and crossed the line to win gold.
Looking ahead Sam, who is studying towards a Bachelor of Health, Sport and Human Performance at Waikato University, has her sights set on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Her recent results now make her a serious contender for selection. Sam knows there is a lot of hard work to be done to make this possible, as she now moves out of age group racing and into competing against elite athletes, along with balancing studying, training and working! We look forward to following Sam’s journey and wish her every success.
I really had a goal to medal, but rst I had to qualify for the A nal. Once you do that, it’s anyone’s game.
CARLA JOHL TOLD GIRL, 2001-2002
ell us about your Southwell experience and memories. I came to Southwell in Year 7 and my experience was kick-started by the best teacher in the business,
Phillippa Milroy. Mrs Milroy was a big in uence on my life and motivated me to take a fresh and renewed interest in school. She was my biggest supporter, especially in sport as I was often the only girl in many of my teams. The small roster of girls in the School at the time made for a unique and close- knit community for all of us. I got the opportunity to be taught and coached by some of Southwell’s legends, such as Mr Dix. I was one of the Canterbury House Leaders in my last year, which was the cherry on the top of a fun and challenging two years at the school. The small community of Southwell created a perfect environment to be successful and de nitely set me up well to take on the challenges of high school.
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