Launceston rower Ciona Wilson admitted to mixed emotions after missing out on Australia's Olympic rowing team but still securing a ticket to Tokyo as a reserve.
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The fourth generation Tamar Rowing Club member is proud to continue the club's impressive international record and has chosen to view the news as a positive.
"It's a pretty tough role being a reserve in that aspect," said Wilson, who turns 29 on Friday.
"It's easier to be positive and get on with training because once you go down the hole that you're not in a boat it gets hard. So it's better to be positive because it's pretty cool what I'm doing.
"There are not many people that are going to Tokyo and I can live on the high of that basically."
Since being selected into the women's National Training Centre in 2017 and relocating to western Sydney, Wilson has enjoyed world championship and world cup podiums and was in the highly-competitive mix for the 14 seats in Australian heavyweight boats for Tokyo.
When the Australian Olympic Committee announced the rowing team on Sunday, Wilson's name was absent even though she was among four reserves.
She said the selection process is a stressful time for all concerned.
"It is pretty ruthless. We've had five years together and all of a sudden some are not going while others are getting the final icing on the cake of what we've been aiming for over that whole cycle.
"So it is ruthless but that's elite sport and you don't realise that's what it's like until you are part of it and that's how cut-throat it is."
Having rowed for well over half her life, Wilson is continuing lengthy club and family traditions.
"Dad got to state level but I'm the first in my family to achieve international representation and it feels pretty good to be able to do that for the club as well as myself.
"It's been quite a few years since the club had someone at this level and we've got a good group of juniors down there now so it's good for them to see it is possible to reach that level.
"It's kind of a surreal feeling because when I started out at Tamar there were other rowers there competing at the top level like Ali Foot, Blair Tunevitsch, Brendan Long, Ingrid Fenger and Carly Cottam and I just wanted to be like them, that was my dream, and now 10 years later I'm doing almost the same thing.
"I've received messages from all of them this week - they are all clubmates and have 100 per cent supported me along the way. Once you are a Tamar member you are part of the family and we all follow each other which is really nice."
Wilson will maintain the same training schedule as the selected team members in the lead-up to the Games, ready to hop into a boat in the event of any injury.
The team will head to Rockhampton on June 27 for a three-week training camp and then fly to Tokyo in mid-July and move into the Olympic Village.
The Australian women's sweep squad will contest the pair, four and eight at Tokyo's Sea Forest Waterway.
The former student at Lilydale District and Launceston Grammar schools is confident the well-publicised COVID-19 impact will not ruin the Olympic experience.
"We've all been vaccinated and a group went over to the final qualification regatta in Switzerland and got back safely so they should implement the same protocols in Tokyo and we all have a safe and exciting trip."
Wilson joins Sarah Hawe on the plane to Tokyo after the dual world champion from Huon was named in the women's eight crew.
They take the Tokyo-bound Tassie contingent to nine by joining Perth track cyclist Georgia Baker, Launceston road cyclist Richie Porte, Launceston triathlete Jake Birtwhistle, Grove canoeist Daniel Watkins, Hobart hockey player Eddie Ockenden and King Island runner Stewart McSweyn along with Forth Paralympic runner Deon Kenzie.
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