County Derry Olympian 'would be devastated' if her local rowing club closed

Stepping out on the Olympic stage is a childhood dream that many athletes dream of, yet only 0.001% will ever earn the right to call themselves an Olympian. 

Joining the illustrious list will be Coleraine’s Hannah Scott when she represents Team GB and NI in Paris this summer. 

And she will hope to join Alan Campbell and brothers Richard and Peter Chambers as Olympic medalists from the Bann Rowing Club. 

The club is one of the oldest and most successful rowing clubs on the island of Ireland, but in the recent past, it has struggled to stay afloat. 

This is a huge concern for Scott. 

She said: “It is such a great little hub, and I would be devastated to see it close.

“I always associate myself with Bann (Rowing Club). In some ways, I’ve never really left. It is definitely a thing for me to be from Bann.

“Bann has struggled a lot with funding recently, and they have had to do a lot of fundraising to keep the club open. 

“Going to the Olympics this summer is something I have dreamt of since I was young at Bann, and I feel very proud to come from there.

“When you are at Bann, you realise the facilities are not world-class and there is not a lot actually happening there. 

“But I love the club for that reason in a way, as it made me realise the things that were making people good it wasn't the boats; it wasn’t the equipment. It was the hard work that was going on there.

“It gave me the structure in terms of hard work for me to be able to appreciate when I moved to America for university.

“It didn’t feel like we were going to be put on a pedestal and told we were great from the beginning.”

While Scott has moved onto adventures elsewhere, having studied at Princeton University before becoming an integral part of Team GB, she always holds Bann Rowing Club as a lynchpin to her success. 

Rowing led to many incredible experiences for the 25-year-old. 

She said: “I never realised rowing was going to give me that opportunity.

“When I got approached to go to America, it was the last year of school when a few of the universities started reaching out to me for rowing.

“I was just doing rowing because I loved it, and from that point forward, going to the States, it was really cool.

“I got a great university experience, and I knew going there, no matter what happened with rowing, I wouldn’t regret going out and getting an Ivy League education.

“I was captain of Princeton’s women's crew, and that was an honour. I feel very lucky to have had that experience, being honest, because I wasn’t planning for it nor did I know about it at the time.”

Rowing is far from being the most popular sport in the world. 

Yet, the perseverance, dedication, and aptitude needed to succeed are unmatched in many sports. 

All qualities Scott has attained through her career as a rower, and it is one of the reasons she encourages others to get into the water.

She said: “Growing up, I loved the work and the hard challenge, but I also enjoyed it.

“I wasn’t very good at running; I was ok at swimming. I started out as a good swimmer, but I kind of found that quite a bit boring. Then for me, rowing came along, and for me, I found a purpose.

“For me growing up, I never felt really good at rowing, but in terms of hard work, that is what was going to drive success more, and I love that about it.

“I had all my friends doing it with me when we were growing up; there were so many of us from all over the town, which for me made it really fun.

“We have so many laughs and memories from those regattas and training days that it reminds me that it was also about meeting people and having those relationships as well.”

Scott is currently in Lombardy, Italy, to prepare for the Olympics, with Team GB being one of the favourites for her event. 

The Coleraine native believes in her training, her team, and the preparations to bring her success and a medal. 

And in doing so, she is proud to represent an often forgotten area in Team GB. 

Northern Ireland. 

She said: “For me, it is representing Northern Ireland and those people, and that is why I love sport and why I love rowing.

“I’m very proud to come from Northern Ireland, and it is Northern Ireland for me. I rowed for Ireland as a junior, and I now row for GB as a senior athlete. I have always found myself in the middle, and I’m just proud of where I come from.

“Rowing brought everyone together, and that is what sport should do, so for me representing Team GB at the Olympics, that is great, but it is also for me representing Northern Ireland.”

As Scott lines up for her event, she will have the support of everyone at Bann Rowing Club, with a future Olympic representative potentially cheering her on as she rows for gold. 

And with this dream being completed, the 25-year-old can move onto her next dream. 

She said: “I’m a big fan of Derry Girls.

“They pulled me through my university experience when I was out in America and homesick.

“So, if I could ever meet the Derry Girls, that would be a dream come true.”