August 2024: Viktorija Senkute

ROWER OF THE MONTH – Lithuania’s Viktorija Senkute has been hovering on the fringes of the women’s single sculls top ranks for some time, with a string of B-final wins leading into sixth places at the 2023 World Rowing Championships and 2024 European Rowing Championships.

But at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Senkute – who was diagnosed with epilepsy when she was 15, managing it through daily medication – sailed through to the final. In the closing 500m she powered into the bronze medal position. The medal was Lithuania’s first in any sport in Paris, making Senkute a national hero.

How did you get into rowing?

My dad was a rower and I live in Trakai, which is a capital of rowing in my country. Everybody has to try rowing. I worked at the rowing competition and was holding a boat for Donata Karaliene. I thought she’s so beautiful and so strong, I thought I should lose some weight and try rowing.

I took a friend so I wouldn’t be scared, and after a couple of weeks my friend left and I stayed. I loved rowing from the beginning.

What took you to row at the University of Central Florida?

When I needed to choose, in my country we can’t do rowing and study full-time. Since I didn’t have a very good erg I couldn’t go to a very good school – I still probably couldn’t. I went on to University of Central Florida because I wanted to try something different than my country for those four years.

In my senior year, in 2017, our Lithuanian men’s quad won the World Championships in Sarasota and I witnessed it with my own eyes. After that I decided that I would come back after UCF and try rowing professionally. Thay was the moment I decided to come back and train.

What do you enjoy about the single scull?

I really enjoy being with my own mind and just making decisions on my own. They’re not always good but I still have freedom to do that. Just to talk to myself, just to meditate.

What really changed the results was boat rigging. The boat was just not rigged comfortably for me to work in and we started adjusting small things and two years ago I started applying my power.

You spent some time out of rowing and competed in cycling – what did that teach you?

Definitely it taught me that if you really want to do something and you have a good physical preparation you can go on and try other sports. The cycling community accepted me as their own and they took me on.

It taught me how the sporting community is big and how important it is not to compete whose sport is better. At the end of the day we’re all reaching for the same goal. The community was something else and to this day they congratulate me and they’re all very happy for my achievements in rowing.

What did you expect from the Paris 2024 Olympic Games?

We talked a lot about this with my coach. We decided the goal would just be to have fun and enjoy my first Olympic Games and soak up the experience. For rowers, fun equals fast.

I really expected the final because I saw my training was going well, and I knew if I put my best race out I could be high in the final. I really wanted to break that cycle of being sixth. It was more mental than it was physical and I was able to unlock it this time. I’m sad there is not enough room on the podium for all of us in the final.

What were your thoughts during the final?

I had a race plan like Emma (Twigg) shared in the press conference that Karolien (Florijn) does this lead and everybody else does this damage control. It was something similar, not to get too far behind in the start. I knew I could do a faster finish than other girls could do because they did too much damage control in the beginning.

I looked ahead and saw I had a good distance, and just started working the second part of the race. All was well.

Apart from winning your medal, what was the best thing about Paris?

I really enjoyed supporting my friends. My boyfriend (Simonas Maldonis) also competed in Paris, he’s a kayaker and a few days after me he competed on the same lake as me.

The Champions Park was something else. In this room with 50 athletes and all have a medal around their neck was an amazing atmosphere.

What was the homecoming to Lithuania like?

To put it into perspective my medal was the first medal for the entire country and the first medal for all Baltic states. It’s really hard to deal with all these emotions, I just keep reliving them again and again. There are only four medals in the entire country so it’s really big at home.

All my family and friends and even people I don’t know, young athletes, came to the airport, it was just insane. It’s massive. I still have some driving around the country to do to share the happiness with others. It’s overwhelming but it’s good emotions.

Where do you want to go next in rowing?

I really enjoy rowing. I have fun when I row, so I don’t row for medals. Of course it’s fun to get medals and it’s sad when you’re close or you lose. But I do day to day rowing just because I like it. I hope that I will enjoy rowing the same way and won’t carry the expectations of bringing a medal in every competition because it’s not going to happen.

I don’t know in what boat I’m going to be next year. I’ll just row in whatever boat the coach says to me.

Where is your favourite place to row?

It’s Lucerne. It’s just beautiful and the atmosphere there. I really like rowing at home in Trakai, but racing in Lucerne tops everything.

What’s your favourite training session (on or off the water)?

I like steady state rowing. I like everything. I don’t have one favourite one. I like when you do a lot and time goes by fast because there’s not a lot of rest and you look at your watch and you’ve done 20k and you don’t even notice it.

What’s on your erg playlist?

I listen from Lithuanian pop to hard techno. It really depends no the day and what Spotify spits out. I can listen to anyone else’s music and I’m fine with them.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Just enjoy what you do, because if you don’t like what you’re doing you won’t get the results. We have to love our day to day to get something good out of it.