It’s 5:15 a.m., on Monday morning and Lauren Wilkinson, an Olympic Rower, walks in perfect unison with her seven teammates, carrying her boat down to the Fraser River at the UBC boathouse. The water looks like glass as a light mist gently drifts across its surface.
As an Olympic rower at both the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Games, Lauren is not a stranger to early mornings. Over the past four years, she has served as the backbone for the Canadian Olympic team, rowing in the women’s Olympic 8+ and medalling at eight international competitions.
As a driven and skilled competitor, with a Bachelors in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Princeton University, it’s easy to see why she has been so successful at rowing. But it wasn't always easy, after racing in the London Olympics, Lauren felt she needed a change of pace, and decided to break from rowing temporarily. Enrolling at UBC in the Hancock Lab, Lauren found this change with a masters in Microbiology and Immunology in the Hancock lab.
Not only did Lauren succeed in finding her feet with science, the break from training with the national team allowed her to explore the roots of why she had first developed a passion for the sport. To her “rowing at University provide[d] the fun yet competitive environment” that had been missing previously. By bonding with the UBC team, she was able to develop the foundation for her training, and rekindle her passion to row at an elite level.
To balance this, the average day for Lauren was to attend early morning practice, work in the lab most of the day and “slip on my running shoes, and go for a quick afternoon run along the seawall” before returning to the lab. While requiring an immense degree of self-discipline, Lauren humbly notes in a team sport like rowing, you find “more inside yourself when others are counting on you”.
As an athlete, it can be seen that both internal and external motivations drive her on a daily basis, but it is her enthusiasm, that can be seen from a mile away, that has carried her to success both on and off the water.
To both her teammates and colleagues, Lauren has always dove wholeheartedly into her pursuits. In the laboratory, it is Lauren’s excitement and sense of adventure that made the greatest impact on her supervisor, Bob Hancock.
Over her Masters, Bob said it was amazing seeing how research shaped her to gain independence, a trait that undoubtedly helped her find the change of pace she craved.
Looking forward, the possibilities for Lauren seem endless. With a successful Master’s thesis and Olympic career under her belt, Lauren looks to shape the world through veterinary medicine.
Be it 5 a.m. in a rowing shell or in an animal hospital, Lauren will continue to shape the lives of others through her determination and enthusiasm.