Sarah Cook (rower)
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Sarah Ann Patricia Cook (born 4 February 1985 in Ipswich, Queensland) is an Australian former representative
rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is ...
. She was a six-time national champion and a dual Olympian who represented at senior
World Rowing Championships The World Rowing Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). It is a week-long event held at the end of the northern hemisphere summer and in non-Olympic years is the highlight of th ...
from 2006 to 2011. Since competitive retirement she has been a rowing coach, commentator and a sports administrator at the highest levels. She has been a board member and since 2021, the Chief Operating Officer of
Rowing Australia Rowing Australia (RA) is the governing body for the sport of rowing in Australia. Established in 1925, it is the only organisation recognised by the Federation Internationale des Societies d’Aviron (FISA), the Australian Sports Commission ( ...
.Cook appointed COO RA
/ref> Since 2022 she has been a member of the
World Rowing World Rowing, also known as the World Rowing Federation (former abbreviation FISA; french: Fédération internationale des sociétés d'aviron), is the international governing body for rowing. Its current president is Jean-Christophe Rolland who ...
Council representing Oceania. Now, Sarah Cool OLY serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Rowing Australia, whilst also retaining her responsibilities as a World Rowing Council member.


Club and state rowing

Cook was raised in Canberra in the
Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. I ...
and educated at St Clare's College, Canberra. Her senior club rowing was initially with the Canberra Rowing Club and later from the
Sydney University Boat Club Sydney University Boat Club is the rowing club in Sydney, Australia with the oldest charter having been formed in 1860 by the founders of the University of Sydney. It has had a boatshed presence in various locations on Sydney Harbour since 1886, ...
. She first made state selection for the ACT in the 2006 senior women's eight contesting the Queen's Cup at the Interstate Regatta within the
Australian Rowing Championships Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...
. She made further Queen's Cup appearances in 2007, 2008, and 2010. In 2006 in Canberra Rowing Club colours, Cook won her first national championship title in a composite coxless four. In 2007, Cook and her new pairs partner
Kim Crow Kimberley Jean "Kim" Brennan (née Crow; born 9 August 1985) is a retired Australian rower. She is a sixteen-time national champion, two-time World Champion, three-time Olympian and Olympic gold medallist. Personal Crow was born in Melbourne ...
won the women's pair national title at the
Australian Rowing Championships Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...
. At the 2008
Australian Rowing Championships Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...
which doubled as Olympic selection trials Cook and Crow backed up their defence as national champions in the W2- by dominating the A final. Cook and Crow then stroked two competing fours, Cook in a composite crew and Crow in the
Melbourne University Boat Club Melbourne University Boat Club is a rowing club in Melbourne, Australia. Its clubhouse or "boat shed" is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significanc ...
crew to win silver and gold respectively. The results were reversed in the W8+ final with Cook in a composite crew winning gold and Crow winning silver. The results speak of the versatility of these two rowers, their underlying competitiveness and ability to stay relaxed and comfortable, either rowing with or against each other. The 2009
Australian Rowing Championships Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...
showed testament to her versatility with Cook securing bronze in the women's single scull contesting the Nell Slatter Trophy in the Interstate Regatta. in 2010 wearing
Sydney University Boat Club Sydney University Boat Club is the rowing club in Sydney, Australia with the oldest charter having been formed in 1860 by the founders of the University of Sydney. It has had a boatshed presence in various locations on Sydney Harbour since 1886, ...
colours Cook combined with Crowe, Sally Kehoe and Kerry Hore to claim gold in the quad at the national championships and won bronze in both the women's eight and in a double scull with Hore.


International rowing career

Cook made her Australian representative debut at the U23 World Rowing Championships held in Poznan, Poland (then known as the Nation's Cup) in a women's coxless four. The crew won silver. Cook at World Rowing
/ref> The following year Cook competed in the same event at the U23 World Championships hosted in
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, the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. Days before the regatta, she fell ill with a throat infection and had barely recovered before racing commenced. The crew finished sixth. 2005 ended with an invitation to the join the Australian senior women's squad at the Australian Institute of Sport. Cook suffered a broken sternum in a motor vehicle accident which kept her off the water for two months, but still won selection into the Australian senior women's eight for the 2006 World Rowing Championships at Eton Dorney, UK, where the women's eight won a bronze medal. In 2007, Cook and
Crow A crow is a bird of the genus '' Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifica ...
gained selection for Australia in the pair and in the eight. In the pair they won gold at
World Rowing Cup The World Rowing Cup is an international rowing competition organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). It began in 1997 and comprises three regattas (apart from in 2001 when there were four) held throughout early summer. In each eve ...
I in Linz, Austria and bronze at WRC II in Amsterdam and Cook also raced in the eight at both regattas. Then Cook and Crow went on to place fourth in both the eight and the pair at the
2008 World Rowing Championships The 2008 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 22 to 27 July 2008 in conjunction with the World Junior Rowing Championships in Ottensheim near Linz, Austria. Since 2008 was an Olympic year for rowing, t ...
in Munich, Germany. In doing so they qualified both boats for Australia for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The final Olympic selection trials were held in February 2008. Cook and Crow achieved selection in the Australian coxless pair for the Beijing Olympics where they placed tenth. Cook and Crow again impressed selectors in 2009 and led the field to secure selection as the Australian pair for the 2009 World Rowing Championships in Poland. Cook and Crow went on to place fifth at the championships in their first international race back since the 2008 Beijing Olympics. In 2010 Cook raced in the women's pair with
Sarah Tait Sarah Anne Tait (née Outhwaite; 23 January 1983 – 3 March 2016) was an Australian rower - a national and world champion, three-time Olympian and Olympic-medal winner. She was the first mother to represent Australia in rowing at Olympic leve ...
at WRC II and III and then competed in the women's four at the 2010 World Rowing Championships on Lake Karapiro in New Zealand where she won silver. In 2011 Cook made the switch to sculling and was selected in the Australian women's quad scull to compete at the Henley Royal Regatta, the
World Rowing Cup The World Rowing Cup is an international rowing competition organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). It began in 1997 and comprises three regattas (apart from in 2001 when there were four) held throughout early summer. In each eve ...
III in Lucerne, and the 2011 World Rowing Championships. In 2012, Cook's final year of international representation she moved back into the Australian women's eight. She rowed in the four seat at Olympic Qualification regatta in Bled, Slovenia; at a World Rowing Cup in the Olympic lead-up and at the
2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
where the crew finished in sixth place. It was Cook's last rowing international appearance.


Sailing career

Cook represented on the Australian sailing squad for three years from 2013 to 2015 in the
470 __NOTOC__ Year 470 ( CDLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Iordanes (or, less frequently, year 1223 ' ...
and 49erFX classes. In 2013 Cook and her sailing partner, Beijing Olympic gold medallist Elise Rechichi, won the national title in the 470 Class. They finished eighth at the 2013 World Titles.


Career after competition

Since competitive retirement Cook has coached school rowing at PLC Sydney,
Wesley College Melbourne Wesley College is an independent, co-educational, open-entry private school in Melbourne, Australia. Established in 1866, the college is the only school in Victoria to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) from early childhood to Year 12. Th ...
, St Joseph's College, Hunters Hill, Kinross Wolaroi School and Canberra Grammar School. She became a board member at Sydney University Sport & Fitness, Rowing NSW, Baseball Australia and from 2016 a councillor, then board member at
Rowing Australia Rowing Australia (RA) is the governing body for the sport of rowing in Australia. Established in 1925, it is the only organisation recognised by the Federation Internationale des Societies d’Aviron (FISA), the Australian Sports Commission ( ...
. In 2022 she took on the role of Chief Operating Officer of
Rowing Australia Rowing Australia (RA) is the governing body for the sport of rowing in Australia. Established in 1925, it is the only organisation recognised by the Federation Internationale des Societies d’Aviron (FISA), the Australian Sports Commission ( ...
. Cook is a World Rowing Broadcast Commentator and was a 2019 race steward at the Henley Royal Regatta. Since 2022 she has been a member of the
World Rowing World Rowing, also known as the World Rowing Federation (former abbreviation FISA; french: Fédération internationale des sociétés d'aviron), is the international governing body for rowing. Its current president is Jean-Christophe Rolland who ...
Council representing Oceania. Inaugural inductee to
University of Canberra The University of Canberra (UC) is a public research university with its main campus located in Bruce, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The campus is within walking distance of Westfield Belconnen, and from Canberra's Civic Centre. U ...
Sport Walk of Fame in 2022.


References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cook, Sarah 1985 births Living people Australian female rowers Rowers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic rowers for Australia Sportspeople from Brisbane World Rowing Championships medalists for Australia ACT Academy of Sport alumni Stewards of Henley Royal Regatta 21st-century Australian women University of Canberra alumni Sportswomen from Queensland