With her eyes firmly fixed on Paris 2024, Grace VandenBroek (Peter Gzowski College) has ambitious plans – both in her athletic career and her academic pursuits.
There’s certainly no shortage of achievements on the athletic side – both locally and internationally. The third-year Business Administration student is a Team Canada and Trent Excalibur rower, as well as the OUA Rowing Athlete of the Year. In 2022, she took second place in U23 women’s double sculls at the 2022 World Rowing Championship in Varese, Italy. During this time, she’s managed to maintain a solid academic record.
It takes discipline and focus to go from the banks of the Otonabee River to the world stage while also succeeding academically. Grace credits her ability to balance the challenge of school and sports to her support network at Trent. “My coaches and professors over my time at Trent have been exceptionally understanding and supportive of my goals both on and off the water,” she says. She’s also learned effective strategies to help her succeed on both the athletic and academic fronts.
Grace will graduate this year and plans to continue her training in British Columbia, motivated by the chance to compete at the Paris 2024 Olympics. After Paris, she plans to return to school to further her education at teachers’ college and hopes that Trent may play a role in helping her achieve that. "Trent and my home base have provided me with an excellent foundation to help me achieve what I have thus far and support me in my goals going forward."
