and trust the head coach, and if one day he asks me to be in a different boat, or even to be a coach, that’s what I’ll do. It’s about seeing the bigger picture as opposed to the more egocentric thing it was when I was younger. At the moment, though, I think my


performance warrants a place as a rower and, as long as I can continue to make improvements in the same way as everyone else, I see myself competing in 2012. If the Olympics were tomorrow, I’d probably be in. It’s hard to predict the future but I do believe that, over the next two years, I’ll get better at a faster rate than I get older. I also like the infl uence and


perspective I can bring as a senior player. I know how good we could be and I’m prepared to challenge us to improve, both technically and emotionally within


november/december 2010 © cybertrek 2010


Gym work brings measurability, says Searle (above); and (right)


Olympic gold in 1992 with brother Jonny and cox Gary Herbert


a team dynamic. And if, aged 38, I’m able to push myself and get good scores on the ergo [rowing machine] and in the boat, hopefully someone aged 23 will feel some pressure to at least equal if not better it. That should encourage us all to challenge our preconceptions of what we think is possible.


How does the training regime compare to before? We do more training nowadays, but probably less intensity. It used to be about ‘no pain, no gain’, whereas now it’s a slow building of physiology over time with fewer explosive sessions. And


Read Health Club Management online at healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital 37


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