Where are they now? Ilse Paulis says see you in Amsterdam

Recently retired gold medal rower Ilse Paulis has far from left the rowing world. With the 2026 World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam just one year away, Paulis has been named as an ambassador for the regatta.

The last time the World Championships were in Amsterdam, 2014, Paulis was a 21-year-old rower in her fifth year competing on the Dutch national team. She finished first in the lightweight quadruple sculls bagging her first (and only) senior world champion title.

Paulis’s rowing career started as a 9-year-old when her dad took his daughter to a local rowing club, put her in a single and, as Paulis says, “it just clicked for me.”

It started off as a once-a-week bit of fun but became more serious as Paulis realised she had talent.

“There is nothing quite like a rowing session on a quiet morning in the middle of nature, when rowing just feels effortless,” says Paulis. “I also love the grind and how there are no shortcuts in rowing; you have to put the effort in every day to be rewarded by getting fitter and quicker.”

At 17 Paulis was already on the Dutch junior national team and at her first international event she finished sixth in the double. Paulis worked her way through the junior team, on to the under-23 team and then made the Dutch senior team in time for the 2014 Amsterdam World Rowing Championships.

Paulis was then selected for the Olympic boat, the lightweight double sculls. With partner Maaike Head they worked their way through late Olympic qualification and on to a stunning gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics. This came after they had finished second in the C-final at the World Championships in the previous year. Paulis calls the gold her career highlight.

The Netherlands had also taken gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and Paulis says the Dutch duo, Marit van Eupen and Kirsten van der Kolk were part of her rowing inspiration.

“Both of them have stayed involved in rowing afterwards and played an important role in my rowing career as a coach and mentor. I do think there is a special connection between (former) lightweights.”

Paulis continued through to the Tokyo Olympics combining training with medical studies. She had decided to retire and Tokyo ended up being her last rowing race.

“I was very fortunate that my rowing coach at the time (Josy Verdonkschot) understood the importance of giving athletes the chance to develop in other areas outside of the boat and think about a career after rowing. After the Tokyo Games, I had about a year of (medical) rotations left. Once I fully graduated as a medical doctor, I knew I had to make a decision for myself. I still felt love for the sport, but at the same time was really excited to chase new opportunities in medicine.”

The decision to retire, Paulis says, was difficult. After being part of the sport for 20 years it was hard to picture life without rowing and it felt like a big step into the unknown.

“I realised how special it is to have been part of a rowing team, where every day you get to work with talented and motivated people, having the shared goal of working hard and making progress together. Starting my medical career felt a bit more uncertain with less clear goals and structure, which took some time getting used to.”

Now working as a full-time junior doctor in A&E, Paulis plans to become a sports medicine physician.

“With my background in elite sports, I understand the value of sport and the how important being able to move and exercise can be for someone’s physical and mental wellbeing.”

And although not able to get out on the water, Paulis is still very much involved in sport having taken up Ironman triathlon and 70.3 triathlon. Already she has proved herself with a win in the Ocean lava Montenegro and the Ironman 70.3 Westriesland.

But one year from now Paulis will be at the Bosbaan very much part of rowing.

“I am really looking forward to a brilliant event at the Bosbaan. Behind the scenes, the organising committee has done a lot of work already in preparation. As a former athlete I can give the committee advice on the athletes perspective of the event when necessary, to make sure all participants can perform at their best. My role will also be to promote rowing and the world champs hopefully inspiring lots of people to get involved, come and watch and try it out.”

The 2026 World Rowing Championships will be held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands from 23-30 August on the Bosbaan rowing regatta course.