Australian rower Cameron Girdlestone is hoping to go one better than his Rio 2016 silver medal when he lines up with his men's quadruple sculls crew at the Tokyo Olympics this week.
Girdlestone’s teammates Jack Cleary, Caleb Antill and Luke Letcher will all make their Olympic debuts in Friday’s heats.
Due to the rescheduling of the Games, Girdlestone is the only remaining rower of the team that originally qualified for Tokyo, but he told SEN's Whateley the new group is a "force to be reckoned with".
"We're very close and we've really got each other's back," he said.
"We're not here to do something we've never done before. You don't come to the Olympics to create magic - you come to the Olympics to do what you've done in training and to fall back on your training.
"Those that trust in what they've done in the lead-up are the ones that stand on the middle of the podium."
Girdlestone said backing in the work they've done will make up for a lack of international competition in the past year and a half.
"2019 is the last time the majority of the team raced anyone internationally, but we're not letting it get to us," he said.
"We're trusting our process and trusting those around us. It's the Olympic Games, things go wrong, but the crews that win the gold medals are the ones that handle it the best."
As more Australian athletes arrive in Tokyo, Girdlestone said he’s feeling comfortable in the Olympic village.
"As an athlete here in the middle of a pandemic, I feel very safe and very well looked after by all of our staff," he said.
"Everyone's in good spirits."
