The one thing Tuks' women rowers are excelling at is making a name for themselves in international competitions.

A quick glance at the U-23 World Rowing Championships in Poland and the FISU World University Games in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany, will prove it. At the U-23 Champs, Chloe Cresswell won silver in lightweight women's single sculls while Courtney Westley and Katherine Williams finished second in the women's pairs race at the Games.

The one The main aspect that stood out at both regattas was the fighting spirit of the Tuks rowers. In both races, the difference between first and second was a mere second. Melissa Schincariol, from Germany, took the U-23 title by rowing the 2000 m in 7:47.22; Cresswell was second in 7:48.46. Lithuania's Kamilė Kralikaitė and Ugne Juzenaite were victorious at the Games in a time of 7:42.96. The South Africans were second in 7:43.97.

Cresswell, who is pursuing her Honours in Actuarial Science, said her main goal as she prepared for the final was to improve on last year's 5th-place finish in the U23 final.

"Apart from that, I did not really have any other expectations. Crossing the line, finishing second was really cool."

Cresswell has high praise for her Tuks coach, Thato Mokoena.

"We've come a long way together. I trust him absolutely. He knows what he is talking about when it comes to race strategy and technique. Thato is always thinking about ways to get me to be a second or so faster in the boat. What definitely helped this time around is being a year older, which equates to being physically stronger."

Asked about her best traits as a rower, Cresswell replied that she backs herself up in the latter stages of a race. 

If one looks at the splits of the final, it is easy to see what she means. After the first 1000 meters, she was four seconds behind the Germans. Over the last 500 metres, she had the strength to put in a final acceleration, gaining nearly three seconds.

What does Cresswell love? One of her favourite aspects of racing is the sensation of merging with the boat.