With a strong bloodline of rowing pedigree, Rosemary Popa was destined to reach the pinnacle of the sport of rowing. The daughter of Sue and Ion, two Australian bronze medallists from Los Angeles 1984, Rosemary made her Olympic debut at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, where she won a gold medal as a member of the Women’s Four, including Annabelle McIntyre, Jessica Morrison, and Lucy Stephan.
Education and Early Life
- School: Attended Caulfield Campus from 2006 to 2009.
Rowing Career
- Dual Citizenship: Represented America on the U23 stage but decided in 2015 to revert back to Australian colors.
- National Training Centre: In 2017, Popa earned selection to Rowing Australia’s National Training Centre in Penrith, working under the tutelage of John Keogh, Tom Westgarth, and Ellen Randell.
- 2018 Competitions: Named to the crew of Women’s Four for the World Rowing Cups and the Women’s Eight for the World Championships, earning bronze in the latter competition.
Olympic Achievements
- Tokyo 2020 Olympics:
- Event: Women’s Four.
- Result: Won gold in an Olympic best time of 6 minutes 15.37 seconds.
- Historical Moment: The victory was part of the ‘hour of power,’ where Australian rowing crews won four medals, contributing to the most successful period in the history of the Australian Olympic Team.
- Final Race: The crew held off the fast-finishing Dutch team to win by just 0.34 of a second.
