Despite terrible weather conditions, an audience of 250 gathered at Woodbridge Community Hall on Friday 11 October to hear Olympic Gold champion rower Katherine Grainger speak about her autobiography ‘Dreams Do Come True’.
Britain’s most successful female rower – winning silver at three consecutive Olympic Games before gold at London 2012 – Katherine had driven 100 miles across country to be at the event, on the invitation of local independent bookshop, Browsers.
The community-minded shop had wanted to
help raise funds for a new boat to cater for the growing female
membership at the town’s rowing club, and Katherine was impressed
with their ambition and made room in her formidable diary of
engagements to be there.
The hall was bedecked in bunting and
union jacks, and the audience broke into spontaneous applause as a
video clip of Katherine’s winning race was played to open the
evening. “It took us back to the moment,” said one member of the
crowd which had travelled from Kent, Essex, Norwich, Cambridgeshire
as well as all over Suffolk. “We were back there reliving London
2012 and all it meant to us.”
Katherine had rushed straight from her
car onto stage, yet was relaxed, poised, articulate and entertaining
as she told the story of her career in rowing, the Olympic ‘journey’
and her successful initiation into writing: her book has been
included in the longlist for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year
award.
Then, with a flourish, she revealed the
new boat which was sitting on stage behind her. The Swift, Club A,
lightweight double had been named the ‘Katherine Grainger’ in her
honour, explained chairman of Deben Rowing Club, William Notcutt. It
was paid for through funds raised from the evening and by the ladies
section at the club and will be used exclusively by them.
The new boat will serve as a fitting
reminder of the evening. Katherine’s humility, determination, hard
work and application were an inspiration to all who heard her and the
queue to have books signed stretched all around the room.
Katherine’s visit had been scheduled
to last two hours, but as time moved on she refused to cut short any
of the personal interactions. Family groups came forward and she
engaged in conversations, finding out personal details before making
an individual inscription in each book and then leaping out of her
seat with her gold medal to pose for a photograph with her admirers.
Finally, with the audience gone,
Katherine still did not rush away, insisting on thanking the
organisers of the event and encouraging the ladies group at Deben
Rowing Club in their endeavours on and off the water. She took
delight in acknowledging the time and effort that had gone into every
element of the evening, including sewing metres of red and yellow
bunting and baking themed gold medal biscuits, and wanted to take
away souvenirs for her friends.
Everyone meeting Katherine Grainger at
Woodbridge Community Hall on a wet evening in October felt they had
been in the presence of a true champion in sport and in life.
(This article will also appear in next month's 'Regatta' magazine.)
