Being an elite athlete and student can be challenging. But master’s student and competitive rower Susannah Duncan says you can achieve anything if you really want to.
Susannah Duncan won the World Championships Lightweight Women’s Single Scull in Sarasota, Florida, in July 2019. (Photo: Heather Montague)
“I was born in the UK to British parents but was brought up in France. I started rowing back home in France and was very fortunate that the coach of the local club happened to be an Olympic champion. He saw a lot of potential in me and encouraged me to compete for Great Britain at the junior championships and he helped me through that.
I did my first three years of ‘Under 23’ (an age category in competitive rowing, Ed.) in the UK alongside my full-time studies in mechanical engineering. But as I got to the end of my degree I was really struggling because it was a heavy degree (BEng, Exeter) and I train twice a day every day. I love it and I certainly wouldn’t call it a sacrifice. You do miss out on a lot of things, but it’s a choice.
I actually competed at the 2016 Junior World Rowing Championships in Rotterdam and won two medals. A couple of days after that I came to visit Delft. It was my first time in the Netherlands and I loved it. The people just seemed so friendly. I saw bikes everywhere and I’m a fanatical cyclist so I thought I could live here. It was that and my love for De Lelie’s ice cream that sold me on Delft in particular.
‘I’ve never known anything but having to be organised and disciplined’
In 2018 I won my first ‘Under 23’ World Rowing Championships medal. I had one more year left in ‘Under 23s’ so it was important for me to find a place where I could combine my studies and train at the level that I wanted to compete at. I found the sustainable energy technology course and thought it was amazing. I also saw they had a special support scheme for elite athletes and the first thing I saw on the website was a girl in a single scull going down the Henley course in light blue colours. I thought, they clearly know what rowers are up to here. Finding the right place paid off because in July 2019 I won the World Championships Lightweight Women’s Single Scull in Sarasota, Florida.
I’m taking a bit longer to do my master’s studies. I’m taking two years to do my first year and hopefully by next September I’ll have enough credits to start my thesis. This summer is the Olympic games and I’m still in the running for that. I’m not one of the favourites, but it’s the chance of a lifetime and I really don’t want to sacrifice it. I’m just living and breathing rowing right now.
I’ve never known anything but having to be organised and disciplined. I never realised that it’s not normal to wake up every morning and know what you have to do every hour of the day. I know what I have to get done and I can be a little bit obsessive. With sports, I strongly believe that where there’s a will there’s a way, even if that sounds like a cliché. Think about what you really want and give yourself the means to achieve it.”
- Also read this story we wrote about Susannah: International member of a student association: what is it like?
Who are the people who work and study on campus? We meet them in Humans of TU Delft. Do you want to be featured in this series? Or do you know someone with a good story to tell? Send us an e-mail at humansoftudelft@gmail.com
Heather Montague / Freelance writer
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