When his ninth grade teacher suggested he give rowing a try, Kiran van Rijn decided to take up the sport. The Vancouver native spent the next 14 years rowing his way through high school and several university degrees. Although Kiran now rows for U of T, he has his sights set on the Canadian national team.
As part of the U of T Blues crew, Kiran wakes up well before the crack of dawn to train on Lake Ontario. “I love training,” says the early riser, “I enjoy the feeling of rowing when everything is going right. The feeling of being out there on the water-it’s hard to describe.”
Lucky for van Rijn, because grueling is the only word to describe the rower’s training schedule. Less than ideal water conditions, weather, and workload aside, Kiran tries to put in a workout each day of the week. He is even working towards training twice a day, every single day. More surprisingly, van Rijn’s passion and dedication extends beyond rowing.
Van Rijn completed his first degree, a Bachelor of Science, in his hometown at UBC. A move to Victoria came next, and with it a second undergrad degree in English and History from UVic. It was only then that Kiran made the cross-Canada migration to Toronto, to commence his masters at U of T’s Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology (IHPST). Now, he’s starting the second year of his Ph.D, also at the IHPST, specializing in medical imaging technology.
On the team, Kiran rows in a single and strokes the men’s varsity eight. According to the rower, there’s a major difference between the two. “Rowing in a single means that you can control everything. You can make it a good row or a bad row. However, in a single you miss out on the camaraderie of eight other teammates.”
Just as van Rijn enjoys the company of his teammates, the others definitely appreciate all Kiran brings to the boat. With the most experience of all the men in the eight, Kiran contributes talent, strength, perseverance, and much more. Not only is he described as a “great teammate and friend,” fellow rower Christian Ventresca believes that, “in a sport where individuals don’t really stand out, Kiran knows when to step up and when to be ‘another guy in the boat.'”
As they say, the proof is in the pudding. At last year’s Canadian University Championships, the Varsity Eight, underdog going in, came out with a third place bronze medal. Just last spring, the men’s Varsity Eight also competed in Milan. There, at the International University Invitational Regatta, they placed an impressive fourth.
As a solo competitor, Kiran has fared even better. This season alone he has won two consecutive men’s single titles-at the U of T Sprints and the Head of the Trent-and two consecutive double’s titles with partner Jon Caners. Van Rijn and Caners rowed their way to the top at the Western Invitational, and the U of T Sprints.
However, Kiran doesn’t measure success by the number of medals around his neck, and tries not to become obsessed with results. He said his best rowing season was the year he decided not to worry about qualifying for the national team and focused on having fun. With this type of mind-set, Kiran has managed to overcome many obstacles and focus on the present.
Although, Kiran hasn’t ruled out trying out for the Canadian national rowing team, his primary goal is to stay active in the sport for as long as possible, while keeping up with his education. He is willing to put the time, sweat, pain and devotion into rowing-a sport that takes “thousands if not millions of strokes” to reach perfection. “Rowing is a sport that can reward those who keep at if for a long time,” adds van Rijn, “getting to where I am now was a very gradual process, achieving little bit by little bit.”
