November 1, 2024 • 17 mins
An exclusive group of Kiwi athletes gained a few more members this year.
Kiwi Canoeist Alicia Hoskin is now one of our talented athletes who have taken home multiple Olympic Golds in the same Games after her success in Paris.
She joined Piney to reflect on her golden Games and her journey to the top of the podium.
“What an absolute privilege to be able to compete with these girls and to be in a place like Paris doing it.”
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Fine
from News Talks.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Edb Leete Padler Alicia Hoskin joined a very exclusive club
of Kiwi's to win multiple gold medals at the same
Olympic Games.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
First this, it is Germany at the moment, who have
their bow just in front from the New Zealanders. Charrington
setting the rhythm and the pace for her teammates. And
behind the bows and now back in front for New Zealand.
It's Carrington lifting the rates. The black boat keeping its
nose in front of Germany. They can see the finish line.
(00:43):
It is gold for New Zealand. It's the women's K
four to the four and the sixth golden moment for
Dame Lisa.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
And then this.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
They are six meters ahead. Ah They're flying the Kiwi crew.
There is no stopping Charrington and Hoskin. They are heading
for the finish line and they are miles ahead of
the opposition. Carrington and Hoskin a boat link for the
half leet New Zealand gold. Two golds in two days
(01:21):
for the dynamic duo, and the legacy of the goat
in the boat just gets bigger by the.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Race gold and the K two five hundred alongside Dame
Lisa Carrington, having also won the K four five hundred
with Dame Lisa, Tara Vaughan and Olivia Brett the previous day.
Alicia Oskin is with us. Celicia just yeah, I hope
you enjoyed listening to those calls. With a couple of
months now past. How do you reflect back on what
(01:50):
happened in Paris?
Speaker 4 (01:52):
I mean even just hearing you talk about those accomplishments,
that still brings a big smile to my face, and
I think it's still sinking in.
Speaker 5 (02:00):
I mean, like, what an absolute.
Speaker 4 (02:03):
Privilege to be able to compete with these girls and
to be in a place like Paris doing it. Yeah,
I have extremely fond memories and it has been nice
even getting back on the water now, back doing what
we'd love. It's just nice to be carrying that experience
with us and yeah, we're still buzzing awesome.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
Can you take us back, Alicia, to the process behind
you being paired with Dame Lisa Carrington and the K
two then after Caitlin Regal retired following the last Olympic Games.
Speaker 5 (02:33):
Yeah, totally.
Speaker 4 (02:34):
I mean every combination, every group of athletes that make
up a boat means the boat is completely new and
completely different. So it has been really cool learning from
the crews that have been before us, but then really
balancing that with you've got to find your uniqueness within
the boat or what you bring to the boat. So
(02:54):
that's been a really cool journey of just learning how
to work with Lisa, how we optimize our paddling, but
then also how we work together off the water, and
same with the K four. Us know, there's been a
few crews that have been before I set. We've learnt
so much off and it's cool to see that legacy
keep progressing.
Speaker 5 (03:15):
So we're trying to sort of.
Speaker 4 (03:16):
Accumulate all our knowledge so that the girls that can
step in the boat after us have a little bit
of tasted that.
Speaker 5 (03:23):
That can also bring their uniqueness to the boat. So
it's been a.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
Really cool journey learning how that works in the physical
sense but also off the water. So yeah, it's been
it's been a lot of work, but it's been a
cool journey.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
I want to talk about the K four as well,
but in the K two with Dame Lisa, was it
a connection that you were able to forge relatively quickly.
Speaker 5 (03:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (03:46):
I mean I got the opportunity to peddle a K
two with Lisa when I was about eighteen years old,
and I couldn't stop my legs from shaking because I
was so nervous, and it was just she was sort
of my role model in the sport growing up, so
to get in a boat with her, I could not
stop the boat from shaking. So it's been a full
(04:07):
circle moment actually racing in Paris. So yeah, we've developed
that friendship for over many many years, which means that
when it comes to working together professionally, we do have
a lot of trust and a lot of respect for
each other.
Speaker 5 (04:23):
So I would say it's relatively.
Speaker 4 (04:25):
Quick and easy to be able to step into that
working relationship.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Did you feel any pressure though, at Lisia coming into
the boat Dame Lisa and Caitlin regl of course one
gold in Tokyo. Did you feel any pressure?
Speaker 5 (04:36):
Definitely?
Speaker 4 (04:37):
I mean, I think I just tried to frame it
up as it means a lot to me, and it
means a lot to our country, it means a lot
to our sport. So I took that extremely seriously, and
it is you know, you get these opportunities once every
four years, which you work for so many hours on
the water to even be able to turn up at
the start line, let alone the pressure of executing a
(05:00):
race and the sort of expectation that you can actually
do quite well.
Speaker 5 (05:06):
There. There's definitely pressure, but I think that's half the fun.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Of it is learning how to actually use the pressure
to get more out of yourself. I think without the pressure,
I probably wouldn't be the athlete or the person that
I am today. So it's just sort of like learning
how to frame it up. But there was definitely pressure.
I mean, you're peddling with the goat of the sport
and the most decorated Olympian of all time, Like it's
(05:30):
hard for that to not cross your mind sometimes. So yeah,
there's definitely pressure, but I think it helped me perform better.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
So in Paris, the K four final was the first one.
You led it halfway, but then Germany got got in front.
I can tell you're all bit nervous back you're watching,
but you got back in front and took the gold.
Can you take us or talk us through the back
end of that race totally?
Speaker 4 (05:54):
I mean it's so exciting because the Germans and the
Hungarians have such.
Speaker 5 (05:59):
A strong legacy in the sport.
Speaker 4 (06:00):
They've won the Olympic Games between those two countries since
it began, so to actually be in the fight with
those crews is something incredibly special for New Zealand anyway.
Speaker 5 (06:12):
But we sort of we.
Speaker 4 (06:13):
Knew the different race strategies that different countries have, so
we knew to stay calm as Germany came through in
the middle section, So to us, it wasn't necessarily a
surprise that they're right there or they're inching.
Speaker 5 (06:27):
Ahead of us.
Speaker 4 (06:28):
So as much as it kept everyone on their seats,
we had to rarely trust our race plan, and we
knew that we could if we trusted it, we could
come through in that back end and that last two
hundred meters. So yeah, I sort of we hit the
two hundred meters to go and I just saw the
like intensity and Losa's body and I.
Speaker 5 (06:50):
Was like, all right, we're going. We're all in here,
and so all the girls. It was sort of like
all of our paddles hitting the water at the same time,
and we just had this really cool momentum through to
the finish line, which as a paddler is sort of
this feeling you're always ting for and it's sort of
the it's cooler than the gold medal.
Speaker 4 (07:09):
That feeling is like coming through the back end of
a race.
Speaker 5 (07:13):
So yeah, that's a cool memory for all of us
to bet I.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Bet I remember chatting to Tara and Olivia afterwards. Actually
they were so delighted and rightly so can you talk
about how you forged such an effect of K four combination?
Speaker 5 (07:27):
Definitely, I mean every girl brings sort of that unique
quality to the boat.
Speaker 4 (07:33):
So, like someone like Olivia is an extremely powerful athlete,
so in seat three she's sort of acting as this
really big engine, especially off the start line. She has
this really col ability to really help accelerate the boat.
So that's sort of like a big part of her
role within the K four. And then Tara is extremely consistent,
(07:56):
like race on race on race, will do the exact
same thing every race. So it's an extremely reliable person
to have in the back of the boat because you've
really got to especially in the back of the boat,
you've got all the countries around you. There's padals everywhere,
there's water flying everywhere. So the more that you can
be really in the rhythm of your own boat is
(08:20):
really important asset at the back of the boat, so
that's something that she does really well. So yeah, everyone
sort of brings their unique quality to the boat, and
that's how we make up the order that we sit in,
or how to get the best out of each other
is by focusing on those things. So yeah, everyone has
a unique role.
Speaker 2 (08:40):
So what's your role then in the two seat in
the K four.
Speaker 4 (08:44):
Yeah, I guess something that I can do is limit
Lisa really well. So it means that the rhythm that
Lisa is setting, I can help connect the back of
the boat with the front of the boat. So there's
sort of, yeah, the rhythm of the boat, the sort
of we call it the stroke rades, so how fast our.
Speaker 5 (09:04):
Pedals are going through the water.
Speaker 4 (09:06):
That sort of my responsibility is to connect Lisa with
the girls in the back so that we're all on
the same page, we're all doing the same thing.
Speaker 5 (09:16):
And I also do a lot of the calls.
Speaker 4 (09:19):
So someone in the middle has to do the calling
so that the front person can hear them and the
back person can hear them. So a lot of my
responsibility is also within the communication. So yeah, lots of
different things make.
Speaker 5 (09:32):
Up my role.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Brilliant. So in the lead up to Paris, then how
did you divide your training time between the K two
and the K four but also giving Dame Lisa time
in the K one. Did that need some serious planning totally.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
I mean, that's why it was so important for our
whole team to be part of all the races and
all the boats, because it really was a team commitment
to take on all three races. So the K four
is definitely the most complex race and it's definitely the
heart one to get that gold medal in, so we
(10:09):
invested a huge amount of time into that because it
requires four girls to be on the same page doing
exactly the same thing at the same time, so it's
a really hard race to win, so we invested a
lot of time into that, but also trusting that when
we are in the K four, I am sitting right
behind Lisa, so I'm still training the K two at
(10:30):
the same time, and then when we go out in
a K one, we're training that engine of physicality to
be able to do those races. So it's sort of
just continually finding the link between all the races as
much as we can so that all of them are
carrying this momentum into the Games, but it is a
(10:50):
tricky thing and it's not easy to be able to
feel like all boats can compete at that standard. So
it's something we had a lot of help with.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
So the K four gold medals locked away. The next day,
it's the K two final with yourself and Dame Lisa,
by contrast to the K four. Finally, he absolutely dominated
the K two more than a boat lean the head
of the rest of the field. I don't think you
were troubled at all. We were worried it all back here.
Did you always feel as though you were in control
of that race.
Speaker 4 (11:19):
It's really interesting because so many people have said that,
But what like crazy is the side wind was coming through.
Speaker 5 (11:27):
So the wind was coming through and bouncing off the
grand stand.
Speaker 4 (11:31):
So the last one hundred meters of the race was
really choppy, and a lot of the girls are wobbling
around and it's really hard to keep in sync with
your teammate, and I remember thinking, we've come this far,
I don't want to fall in. So it's so focused
and I had no energy going to where the other
crews were.
Speaker 5 (11:49):
I was just so focused on Lisa staying in sync
with her.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
And so I didn't really realize what we've done until
we crossed the finish line. But yeah, at that point,
it was just incredible, Like it was such a cool
race to be a part of, and to have that
many girls fighting behind us and having two girls get
the third equal that really happens in kayaking, so it's
(12:15):
awesome to see the quality of the field as well.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
Now I don't expect you to reveal the content of
any discussions you've had with Dame Lisa about her continuation
or not, but do you now kind of have to
wait for her to make a decision about whether she
will go around again for another Olympic cycle, because regardless,
I presume you're targeting the next Olympic Games.
Speaker 4 (12:38):
Yes, so pretty much like my goal isn't really dependent
on anyone or anything. I as soon as I went
on break, I absolutely missed paddling and I missed the girls,
so I knew that I just wanted to get back
on the water.
Speaker 5 (12:53):
So yeah, that's.
Speaker 4 (12:53):
Happening irrelevant to whatever our context is going forward. So yeah,
that's something I love to do. But it's been awesome
because it's not like our team has made a commitment
to keep working together because we have these experiences and
this knowledge that we've learned before the Paris Olympics.
Speaker 5 (13:14):
We're not just going to throw that away and walk
away or anything.
Speaker 4 (13:17):
So we're raally trying to spend hours off the water
debriefing and planning and how we're K four pedals because
we have only done it at once, and a lot
of other countries have done it a lot of times.
So we're still really working hard to try and set
up what our program looks like, how we.
Speaker 5 (13:38):
Move forward together, how we can make the next one
more knowledgeable or fastest.
Speaker 4 (13:43):
So like it's we're spending a lot of time doing
the debriefing and the planning, which has been really exciting.
Speaker 2 (13:50):
Have you or would you ever race K one?
Speaker 4 (13:55):
I think we get asked that all the time, But
I mean, I'm so passionate about the team, and I'm
so passionate about K four racing and K T racing
that it's not necessarily something that's on the top of
my mind. But I'm really invested in our team, so
that's definitely where my priority is.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
All Right, you've had heart surgery when you were seventeen
years old. Did you ever think you might not be
able to keep paddling at an elite level definitely.
Speaker 4 (14:24):
I mean if my oblation wasn't successful, then there would
have been no career in high performance sport for me.
Speaker 5 (14:30):
So there was definitely a time there.
Speaker 4 (14:32):
Where I thought that maybe I couldn't exercise to that
level again or eveven just move my body to that level.
But something that it did give me was this new
sort of perspective, which was, if I can't do the sport,
who am I? For one? But then also what is
(14:55):
it that I missed so much? I missed the community,
I miss being out there with the girls, I miss
the challenge of it. So it really helped me find
why I wanted to do rather than I just want
to win the Olympics. It became so much more than that.
So yeah, when I did get to come back to paddling,
(15:16):
I think it really helped me have it in a
bit more of a perspective. And what a privilege it
is that my body can move this way and can
actually train three times a day, And so I feel
like I really haven't taken that.
Speaker 5 (15:29):
For granted, So I'm really really grateful.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Amazing, amazing and sight, what a great outlook as well.
So where are your gold medals? Where do you keep them?
Speaker 4 (15:39):
They're actually just here, They're on my desk. They come
to my school, visits with me, and sort of they're
still doing the rounds. I think about maybe two thousand
people might have either taken books just with them or
held them, so they're a little bit scratched up, but
that's how I'd prefer it anyway.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Absolutely, they're not supposed to live behind glass, are they
or in a drawer somewhere. They're supposed to be taken
out and shown around and used to excite people and
motivate people, perhaps to be an Olympian themselves. Just terrific. Look,
it's been such a pleasure talking to you, Alicia just
before I go, So you meet you before you're back.
You're back training now you're back in the water.
Speaker 4 (16:20):
Yeah, we had about five weeks off and I had
antsomer pants.
Speaker 5 (16:25):
So I have got back out on the water, back.
Speaker 4 (16:27):
In the gym, and it's very basic level training.
Speaker 5 (16:31):
But I hate yeah, I do love it. So I'm
back out on the water now.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
Well, you gave us a couple of absolutely magnificent moments
in Paris in the K two and the K four,
congratulations Alicia. It's obviously, you know, nowhere near the end
for you. Another Olympic cycle coming up in whichever form
that takes. Again, congratulations and thanks so much for taking
the time for a chat.
Speaker 5 (16:54):
Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Thanks Alicia. Alicia Hoskin there, double gold medalist at Paris
and the K two and K four five hundred meters.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live
news talk set B weekends from midday, or follow the
podcast on iHeartRadio.
You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Fine
from News Talks.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Edb Leete Padler Alicia Hoskin joined a very exclusive club
of Kiwi's to win multiple gold medals at the same
Olympic Games.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
First this, it is Germany at the moment, who have
their bow just in front from the New Zealanders. Charrington
setting the rhythm and the pace for her teammates. And
behind the bows and now back in front for New Zealand.
It's Carrington lifting the rates. The black boat keeping its
nose in front of Germany. They can see the finish line.
(00:43):
It is gold for New Zealand. It's the women's K
four to the four and the sixth golden moment for
Dame Lisa.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
And then this.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
They are six meters ahead. Ah They're flying the Kiwi crew.
There is no stopping Charrington and Hoskin. They are heading
for the finish line and they are miles ahead of
the opposition. Carrington and Hoskin a boat link for the
half leet New Zealand gold. Two golds in two days
(01:21):
for the dynamic duo, and the legacy of the goat
in the boat just gets bigger by the.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Race gold and the K two five hundred alongside Dame
Lisa Carrington, having also won the K four five hundred
with Dame Lisa, Tara Vaughan and Olivia Brett the previous day.
Alicia Oskin is with us. Celicia just yeah, I hope
you enjoyed listening to those calls. With a couple of
months now past. How do you reflect back on what
(01:50):
happened in Paris?
Speaker 4 (01:52):
I mean even just hearing you talk about those accomplishments,
that still brings a big smile to my face, and
I think it's still sinking in.
Speaker 5 (02:00):
I mean, like, what an absolute.
Speaker 4 (02:03):
Privilege to be able to compete with these girls and
to be in a place like Paris doing it. Yeah,
I have extremely fond memories and it has been nice
even getting back on the water now, back doing what
we'd love. It's just nice to be carrying that experience
with us and yeah, we're still buzzing awesome.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
Can you take us back, Alicia, to the process behind
you being paired with Dame Lisa Carrington and the K
two then after Caitlin Regal retired following the last Olympic Games.
Speaker 5 (02:33):
Yeah, totally.
Speaker 4 (02:34):
I mean every combination, every group of athletes that make
up a boat means the boat is completely new and
completely different. So it has been really cool learning from
the crews that have been before us, but then really
balancing that with you've got to find your uniqueness within
the boat or what you bring to the boat. So
(02:54):
that's been a really cool journey of just learning how
to work with Lisa, how we optimize our paddling, but
then also how we work together off the water, and
same with the K four. Us know, there's been a
few crews that have been before I set. We've learnt
so much off and it's cool to see that legacy
keep progressing.
Speaker 5 (03:15):
So we're trying to sort of.
Speaker 4 (03:16):
Accumulate all our knowledge so that the girls that can
step in the boat after us have a little bit
of tasted that.
Speaker 5 (03:23):
That can also bring their uniqueness to the boat. So
it's been a.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
Really cool journey learning how that works in the physical
sense but also off the water. So yeah, it's been
it's been a lot of work, but it's been a
cool journey.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
I want to talk about the K four as well,
but in the K two with Dame Lisa, was it
a connection that you were able to forge relatively quickly.
Speaker 5 (03:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (03:46):
I mean I got the opportunity to peddle a K
two with Lisa when I was about eighteen years old,
and I couldn't stop my legs from shaking because I
was so nervous, and it was just she was sort
of my role model in the sport growing up, so
to get in a boat with her, I could not
stop the boat from shaking. So it's been a full
(04:07):
circle moment actually racing in Paris. So yeah, we've developed
that friendship for over many many years, which means that
when it comes to working together professionally, we do have
a lot of trust and a lot of respect for
each other.
Speaker 5 (04:23):
So I would say it's relatively.
Speaker 4 (04:25):
Quick and easy to be able to step into that
working relationship.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
Did you feel any pressure though, at Lisia coming into
the boat Dame Lisa and Caitlin regl of course one
gold in Tokyo. Did you feel any pressure?
Speaker 5 (04:36):
Definitely?
Speaker 4 (04:37):
I mean, I think I just tried to frame it
up as it means a lot to me, and it
means a lot to our country, it means a lot
to our sport. So I took that extremely seriously, and
it is you know, you get these opportunities once every
four years, which you work for so many hours on
the water to even be able to turn up at
the start line, let alone the pressure of executing a
(05:00):
race and the sort of expectation that you can actually
do quite well.
Speaker 5 (05:06):
There. There's definitely pressure, but I think that's half the fun.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
Of it is learning how to actually use the pressure
to get more out of yourself. I think without the pressure,
I probably wouldn't be the athlete or the person that
I am today. So it's just sort of like learning
how to frame it up. But there was definitely pressure.
I mean, you're peddling with the goat of the sport
and the most decorated Olympian of all time, Like it's
(05:30):
hard for that to not cross your mind sometimes. So yeah,
there's definitely pressure, but I think it helped me perform better.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
So in Paris, the K four final was the first one.
You led it halfway, but then Germany got got in front.
I can tell you're all bit nervous back you're watching,
but you got back in front and took the gold.
Can you take us or talk us through the back
end of that race totally?
Speaker 4 (05:54):
I mean it's so exciting because the Germans and the
Hungarians have such.
Speaker 5 (05:59):
A strong legacy in the sport.
Speaker 4 (06:00):
They've won the Olympic Games between those two countries since
it began, so to actually be in the fight with
those crews is something incredibly special for New Zealand anyway.
Speaker 5 (06:12):
But we sort of we.
Speaker 4 (06:13):
Knew the different race strategies that different countries have, so
we knew to stay calm as Germany came through in
the middle section, So to us, it wasn't necessarily a
surprise that they're right there or they're inching.
Speaker 5 (06:27):
Ahead of us.
Speaker 4 (06:28):
So as much as it kept everyone on their seats,
we had to rarely trust our race plan, and we
knew that we could if we trusted it, we could
come through in that back end and that last two
hundred meters. So yeah, I sort of we hit the
two hundred meters to go and I just saw the
like intensity and Losa's body and I.
Speaker 5 (06:50):
Was like, all right, we're going. We're all in here,
and so all the girls. It was sort of like
all of our paddles hitting the water at the same time,
and we just had this really cool momentum through to
the finish line, which as a paddler is sort of
this feeling you're always ting for and it's sort of
the it's cooler than the gold medal.
Speaker 4 (07:09):
That feeling is like coming through the back end of
a race.
Speaker 5 (07:13):
So yeah, that's a cool memory for all of us
to bet I.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Bet I remember chatting to Tara and Olivia afterwards. Actually
they were so delighted and rightly so can you talk
about how you forged such an effect of K four combination?
Speaker 5 (07:27):
Definitely, I mean every girl brings sort of that unique
quality to the boat.
Speaker 4 (07:33):
So, like someone like Olivia is an extremely powerful athlete,
so in seat three she's sort of acting as this
really big engine, especially off the start line. She has
this really col ability to really help accelerate the boat.
So that's sort of like a big part of her
role within the K four. And then Tara is extremely consistent,
(07:56):
like race on race on race, will do the exact
same thing every race. So it's an extremely reliable person
to have in the back of the boat because you've
really got to especially in the back of the boat,
you've got all the countries around you. There's padals everywhere,
there's water flying everywhere. So the more that you can
be really in the rhythm of your own boat is
(08:20):
really important asset at the back of the boat, so
that's something that she does really well. So yeah, everyone
sort of brings their unique quality to the boat, and
that's how we make up the order that we sit in,
or how to get the best out of each other
is by focusing on those things. So yeah, everyone has
a unique role.
Speaker 2 (08:40):
So what's your role then in the two seat in
the K four.
Speaker 4 (08:44):
Yeah, I guess something that I can do is limit
Lisa really well. So it means that the rhythm that
Lisa is setting, I can help connect the back of
the boat with the front of the boat. So there's
sort of, yeah, the rhythm of the boat, the sort
of we call it the stroke rades, so how fast our.
Speaker 5 (09:04):
Pedals are going through the water.
Speaker 4 (09:06):
That sort of my responsibility is to connect Lisa with
the girls in the back so that we're all on
the same page, we're all doing the same thing.
Speaker 5 (09:16):
And I also do a lot of the calls.
Speaker 4 (09:19):
So someone in the middle has to do the calling
so that the front person can hear them and the
back person can hear them. So a lot of my
responsibility is also within the communication. So yeah, lots of
different things make.
Speaker 5 (09:32):
Up my role.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Brilliant. So in the lead up to Paris, then how
did you divide your training time between the K two
and the K four but also giving Dame Lisa time
in the K one. Did that need some serious planning totally.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
I mean, that's why it was so important for our
whole team to be part of all the races and
all the boats, because it really was a team commitment
to take on all three races. So the K four
is definitely the most complex race and it's definitely the
heart one to get that gold medal in, so we
(10:09):
invested a huge amount of time into that because it
requires four girls to be on the same page doing
exactly the same thing at the same time, so it's
a really hard race to win, so we invested a
lot of time into that, but also trusting that when
we are in the K four, I am sitting right
behind Lisa, so I'm still training the K two at
(10:30):
the same time, and then when we go out in
a K one, we're training that engine of physicality to
be able to do those races. So it's sort of
just continually finding the link between all the races as
much as we can so that all of them are
carrying this momentum into the Games, but it is a
(10:50):
tricky thing and it's not easy to be able to
feel like all boats can compete at that standard. So
it's something we had a lot of help with.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
So the K four gold medals locked away. The next day,
it's the K two final with yourself and Dame Lisa,
by contrast to the K four. Finally, he absolutely dominated
the K two more than a boat lean the head
of the rest of the field. I don't think you
were troubled at all. We were worried it all back here.
Did you always feel as though you were in control
of that race.
Speaker 4 (11:19):
It's really interesting because so many people have said that,
But what like crazy is the side wind was coming through.
Speaker 5 (11:27):
So the wind was coming through and bouncing off the
grand stand.
Speaker 4 (11:31):
So the last one hundred meters of the race was
really choppy, and a lot of the girls are wobbling
around and it's really hard to keep in sync with
your teammate, and I remember thinking, we've come this far,
I don't want to fall in. So it's so focused
and I had no energy going to where the other
crews were.
Speaker 5 (11:49):
I was just so focused on Lisa staying in sync
with her.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
And so I didn't really realize what we've done until
we crossed the finish line. But yeah, at that point,
it was just incredible, Like it was such a cool
race to be a part of, and to have that
many girls fighting behind us and having two girls get
the third equal that really happens in kayaking, so it's
(12:15):
awesome to see the quality of the field as well.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
Now I don't expect you to reveal the content of
any discussions you've had with Dame Lisa about her continuation
or not, but do you now kind of have to
wait for her to make a decision about whether she
will go around again for another Olympic cycle, because regardless,
I presume you're targeting the next Olympic Games.
Speaker 4 (12:38):
Yes, so pretty much like my goal isn't really dependent
on anyone or anything. I as soon as I went
on break, I absolutely missed paddling and I missed the girls,
so I knew that I just wanted to get back
on the water.
Speaker 5 (12:53):
So yeah, that's.
Speaker 4 (12:53):
Happening irrelevant to whatever our context is going forward. So yeah,
that's something I love to do. But it's been awesome
because it's not like our team has made a commitment
to keep working together because we have these experiences and
this knowledge that we've learned before the Paris Olympics.
Speaker 5 (13:14):
We're not just going to throw that away and walk
away or anything.
Speaker 4 (13:17):
So we're raally trying to spend hours off the water
debriefing and planning and how we're K four pedals because
we have only done it at once, and a lot
of other countries have done it a lot of times.
So we're still really working hard to try and set
up what our program looks like, how we.
Speaker 5 (13:38):
Move forward together, how we can make the next one
more knowledgeable or fastest.
Speaker 4 (13:43):
So like it's we're spending a lot of time doing
the debriefing and the planning, which has been really exciting.
Speaker 2 (13:50):
Have you or would you ever race K one?
Speaker 4 (13:55):
I think we get asked that all the time, But
I mean, I'm so passionate about the team, and I'm
so passionate about K four racing and K T racing
that it's not necessarily something that's on the top of
my mind. But I'm really invested in our team, so
that's definitely where my priority is.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
All Right, you've had heart surgery when you were seventeen
years old. Did you ever think you might not be
able to keep paddling at an elite level definitely.
Speaker 4 (14:24):
I mean if my oblation wasn't successful, then there would
have been no career in high performance sport for me.
Speaker 5 (14:30):
So there was definitely a time there.
Speaker 4 (14:32):
Where I thought that maybe I couldn't exercise to that
level again or eveven just move my body to that level.
But something that it did give me was this new
sort of perspective, which was, if I can't do the sport,
who am I? For one? But then also what is
(14:55):
it that I missed so much? I missed the community,
I miss being out there with the girls, I miss
the challenge of it. So it really helped me find
why I wanted to do rather than I just want
to win the Olympics. It became so much more than that.
So yeah, when I did get to come back to paddling,
(15:16):
I think it really helped me have it in a
bit more of a perspective. And what a privilege it
is that my body can move this way and can
actually train three times a day, And so I feel
like I really haven't taken that.
Speaker 5 (15:29):
For granted, So I'm really really grateful.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Amazing, amazing and sight, what a great outlook as well.
So where are your gold medals? Where do you keep them?
Speaker 4 (15:39):
They're actually just here, They're on my desk. They come
to my school, visits with me, and sort of they're
still doing the rounds. I think about maybe two thousand
people might have either taken books just with them or
held them, so they're a little bit scratched up, but
that's how I'd prefer it anyway.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Absolutely, they're not supposed to live behind glass, are they
or in a drawer somewhere. They're supposed to be taken
out and shown around and used to excite people and
motivate people, perhaps to be an Olympian themselves. Just terrific. Look,
it's been such a pleasure talking to you, Alicia just
before I go, So you meet you before you're back.
You're back training now you're back in the water.
Speaker 4 (16:20):
Yeah, we had about five weeks off and I had
antsomer pants.
Speaker 5 (16:25):
So I have got back out on the water, back.
Speaker 4 (16:27):
In the gym, and it's very basic level training.
Speaker 5 (16:31):
But I hate yeah, I do love it. So I'm
back out on the water now.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
Well, you gave us a couple of absolutely magnificent moments
in Paris in the K two and the K four,
congratulations Alicia. It's obviously, you know, nowhere near the end
for you. Another Olympic cycle coming up in whichever form
that takes. Again, congratulations and thanks so much for taking
the time for a chat.
Speaker 5 (16:54):
Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Thanks Alicia. Alicia Hoskin there, double gold medalist at Paris
and the K two and K four five hundred meters.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live
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podcast on iHeartRadio.
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