Five years of hard labour and frequent heartache plus a century-old family heritage went into Henry Youl's long-awaited national selection.
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After a successful under-age international career, the Launceston rower suffered repeated rejection before finally nailing a senior call-up and continuing a rich tradition for both his family and club.
"I'm stoked, absolutely rapt. It almost does not feel real at the moment," said the 26-year-old Tamar Rowing Club captain.
"It was the same story every year but I always wanted to make a senior team and I've always had the attitude that I would rather have a crack and miss out than think in 10 years' time that I wish I'd gone for it."
When Rowing Australia named its crews and squads for world cups in Serbia, Poland and Switzerland this week, Youl was one of 12 in the squad for the men's coxed eight and pair.
The former Launceston Church Grammar rower contested an under-21 trans-Tasman series in 2015 plus under-23 world champs in Rotterdam and Plovdiv (finishing third and fifth in coxed fours) but has not donned national colours since 2017.
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One of 80 athletes who recently underwent a week of rigorous trials in Canberra, Launceston-born Youl's hard-earned senior selection opens the door to both world titles in the Czech Republic in September and the Paris Olympics in 2024 and gives him the chance to extend a family connection.
The Australian team is targeting world cups scheduled to take place in Belgrade (from May 27-29), Poznan (June 17-19) and Lucerne (July 8-10) as well as the Henley Royal Regatta beginning in late June.
"It will be great to race on the world stage again and Henley is one of the greatest rowing events on the planet," he said. "My great grandfather, John Bell, raced there in the 1920s. He rowed for Cambridge and also won the university boat race twice.
"My grandmother (Julia Youl at Devon Hills) always tells me that he'd be looking down and how proud he would be of me. Rowing has been in the family a long time."
The only Tasmanian named on the team, Youl is also honoured to extend his club's rich international pedigree, headlined by his coach, two-time Olympian Brendan Long.
"I'm pretty proud to continue Tamar's national representation. A lot of athletes have rowed for Australia before so it's very exciting and I had such support leading into trials and since being named. It's a family club and at times like this that really shows. Ciona Wilson has been a good friend since school, Brendan is my coach and I've had great support from guys like Ali Foot and Blair Tunevitsch. It's all pretty cool and awesome to be captain of that club.
"Brendan has been great. He's been with me through the highs and lows over six or seven years and has been super supportive. He always had confidence I could do it even when I thought I'd had enough. He always believed in me. He's been there and done it and was always trying to get me to achieve what he did. When I rang and told him he was so stoked for me."
A member of the men's double scull at the 2004 Athens Olympics and quad scull at Beijing '08, Long said Youl's selection was fully deserved.
"It's been a long time coming so is great for Henry," he said. "It's just massive for him because he's made some really big sacrifices to get where he is and that made the difference. He committed 100 per cent and got the reward and that's a big step in the right direction to go to the Paris Olympics."
Youl, who in 2019 became the first man to win all seven possible events at the Tasmanian rowing championships, admitted he had often contemplated giving up trying to make the national team.
"All the time because it's just so hard. I was doing a carpentry apprenticeship for between 38 and 45 hours a week and also trying to train enough hours a week to be competitive at events and many times I thought maybe I'm done. In 2018 I lost interest and took a step back then in 2019 thought I'd give it a red hot crack. I got to trials and got cut which was a blow but I thought I'd stay fit and keep going."
An invite to join a camp at the National Training Centre in Canberra in January offered hope, but again it was far from plain sailing.
A tear in his intercostal muscle relegated Youl to extensive bike training which in turn led to achilles issues.
"I was not sure I would make it through the week but I had good support staff, the injuries came right and I got through it.
"They called a meeting of sweepers after four days of trials and said this group is in the four, this is the squad for the eight and pair and unfortunately the rest were cut. It was pretty exciting to get in and a big sigh of relief.
"I had some success at under-age level but I always wanted to row for Australia and that feeling of representing your country kept me going and kept the dream alive. It's great to finally crack a senior team and leading into Paris, I'm super excited and cannot wait to get stuck in.
"I stuck at it because I wanted to do it. That's what got me up every morning because I wanted to have a go and not regret pulling out early. Nothing is in concrete yet but being in the squad gives me the opportunity."
Youl, who thanked his partner, family, friends, employer and the Tasmanian Institute of Sport for their support, will relocate to be with the national squad in Canberra.
"It is a pretty big move because my whole life is here but that's part of making the team and if all goes well it's only a couple of years until Paris because the cycle is a year shorter than normal.
"This is the reason I do it. I want to try and be an Olympian and this is a stepping stone in the right direction. There is still so much to happen but I'm going down the right path to achieve that goal and if I don't, at least I can say I gave it everything."
Rob Shaw
Heralding the impact of Tasmanian sport without saying "punching above its weight" is not as easy as it sounds.
Heralding the impact of Tasmanian sport without saying "punching above its weight" is not as easy as it sounds.
