Two teenage rowers from a small Hastings school are looking to follow in the footsteps of their famous alumni.
Olivia Rachten and Raina Mackenzie have only been rowing for six months and have shown a lot of promise.
The pair go to Taikura Rudolf Steiner school, the same school as the Olympic gold medal Evers-Swindell twins attended.
"We walk past a big photo of them with the gold medals on every morning when we walk up the school stair," said Mackenzie.
Both teens have taken up the rowing double and with little experience rowed at the Maadi Cup on Lake Karapiro this week.
"It's amazing, I had no idea there'd be so many schools and stuff like that and just the atmosphere. It's awesome," said Rachten.
The duo received some valuable coaching and a tour of the High Performance Centre by New Zealand elite squad member Emma Dyke.
"I remember when I was at school in novice year, like coming around here and seeing the women’s eight erging and that was pretty cool, so it's nice to show other people around," said Dyke.
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