United States has a three-time Olympic Champion

The latest gold came at Rio as part of the US women’s eight – the formidable side that’s won every Olympic and World Rowing Championship since 2006.

Her first was in 2008 at Beijing, as a 20-year-old who’d never been to an Olympics before.  She repeated the feat four years later in London.

In many countries triple gold medallists are household names but Logan flies under the radar. And she’s fine with that. She’s not in it for the fame and says her satisfaction comes from working seamlessly with her team to move the boat as well as it can possibly go.

Logan comes from the small fishing town of Boothbay Harbour in Maine and at her high school rowing was one of the main sports. The tall 16-year-old was introduced to rowing by her history teacher and rowing became her sport of choice after trying swimming and basketball. Getting first onto the US junior national team and then the under-23 team, as a 19-year-old, Logan excelled. The following year she was off to the Olympics.

“I have such personal motivation and goals that it makes rowing very personal,” says Logan.  “It’s about me and my team and the coach.”

Despite a deep love for the eight, after London, Eleanor tried life in a smaller boat. She had finished her studies and wanted to dedicate the next four years to rowing – to focus on technique and learn how to really make a boat move.  It was a change that showcased her talent even more.  She became the national single sculls champion and also rowed in a pair and quadruple sculls including international races in the single and quad.

 “I learned so much more about the rowing stroke and how that fits in with training and physical fitness,” she says.

But though she is grateful to be able to row a single well (she uses it for her personal workouts) the eight kept calling her back.

“I’ve grown to appreciate the power and feeling of being in the eight even more. I really do love being a part of that,” she says. “It can be a little underrated in terms of how people view it but it is something special to be a part of.”

Despite her drive and talent, Eleanor is taking time-out for a few months. She’s moved from the rowing stronghold of Princeton on the east coast of the United States to Seattle in the west. She’s looking forward to spending time with her husband, who’s based there, and getting her career outside of rowing on track.

As for what her future in the sport is, she’s keeping an open mind. One of her idols is the Belarusian powerhouse, Ekaterina Karsten, who is still competing in the women’s single sculls at 44. At 28, Eleanor still feels young.

“What motivates me is that you can keep learning more about the sport.  I love to get better personally and if that helps the team then that’s great,” says Logan. “And Seattle is a great place for rowing.”