Back in 2022, Ella McKinley was at a bit of a crossroads.
Having been a competitive synchronized swimmer throughout high school, McKinley said she felt a bit of “a void” when she went off to study at university.
“I kind of reached a bit of an age transition zone, I was going to university but not ready to be done with athletics,” she said.
Looking for a solution, the Aurora athlete took part in the RBC Training Ground, a program that aims to identify young, potential future Olympic athletes.
She was identified as a talented prospect by Rowing Canada.
Since participating in the program, McKinley has been living and training in Welland at the Ontario NextGen Performance Centre.
Now she has been selected to compete for the Canadian women’s under-23 team in the coxed four.
McKinley and the team is just down the road in St. Catharines this week for the 2024 Rowing World Championships.
“It’s very exciting to have family and friends get to come watch me race, and everybody who’s been supporting me through this journey will be able to come and cheer me on from the grandstand.”
Speaking to AuroraToday during the drive to St. Catharines, her father, Colum McKinley, said Ella took a risk when she decided to pursue rowing. But he said Ella came up with a plan, taking classes online at Guelph University and some in-person at Brock University to allow her to train in Welland.
“It’s been an incredible journey so far, she is a naturally, gifted athlete. Even from a young age she took to sports very, very quickly, but she also works exceptionally hard,” he said. “She’s loved every sport she’s done, and she’s found rowing and she’s put her heart, hard work, and tenacious personality, everything into it."
"I think her journey is still in the early days,” he added.
‘Lots of similarities between synchronized swimming and rowing’
While McKinley said there was “definitely a learning curve” from synchronized swimming to rowing, she said there are some similarities between the two sports.
“I started off learning a single, which is definitely one of the harder boats to master, so there was a lot more swimming than rowing in my first few weeks,” she said.
“They’re two very different sports for sure, one you’re racing against the clock and then one you’re performing in front of judges, so they definitely contrast in their own ways,” she added.
“But there’s a lot of similarities I’ve found. In synchro, obviously you want to be synchronized, but in rowing, you want to sync up with your crewmates and your blade work, to get the most efficient stroke through the water.”
After the past year-and-a-half training in Welland, she said, “Eventually things started to click into place. Rowing is one of those sports where you have to focus on getting one per cent better every day, which can be very hard mentally, but also very rewarding.”
“High-level sports, once you get into it, you’re used to the early mornings and long hours, so rowing kind of filled a void for me that I thought I was going to lose if I left synchro.”
It's a busy time for McKinley. The day after the world championships are set to finish in St. Catharines, she is moving to Syracuse University to study biology and join their title-winning rowing team.
Further down the line, McKinley is eyeing a spot competing at the highest level.
“Olympics has always been a goal of mine, for any sport I’ve done, it’s the top of the athletics, you compete with the best of the best, and it’s always something that sits on the back of my mind,” she said.
Sixteen RBC Training Ground program graduates were selected for Canada for the Paris 2024 Olympics, a new high for the program.
“I think for me, I just take it day by day and see where the path takes me,” she said. “Obviously, I want to achieve the best that’s possible but I think the process is something you have to learn to enjoy too.”
The 2024 World Rowing Senior, under-23 and under-19 Championships run Aug. 18 to 25 at the Royal Canadian Henley Rowing Course in St. Catharines.
