A long time ago, when contemplating on buying my first bum pad Palmy said to me “Get the green one because that is the colour for Auroras, then you will look stupid if you bought it but didn’t get in”. I cursed at him at first but went and purchased it anyway.

In his hard-to-understand Spanish accent, I understood what he wanted to tell me.  As captain (now coach) and friend, that was his way of communicating his passion and eagerness to see a teammate rise and succeed. That was his way of telling me that I can do it.

Getting into the national team was not an end goal but a new beginning. You never truly know what your body and mind are capable of until you put it to the test. Representing Australia in the 3rd IDBF Dragon Boat World Cup and the 13th Asian Dragon Boat Championships did just that for me. It was an absolute honour to say the least; seven months of unadulterated commitment boiled down to just three adrenaline-filled race days.

I will never forget how choppy and uncertain the journey was. Plagued by abrupt setbacks during World Cup in China, we found ourselves in the midst of crisis confronted by broken paddles, unaccommodating 10s boats and to top it off a stomach bug that rendered the team handicapped - Murphy’s Law at its best. Our morale diminished as the virus spread through the team, shattering our spirit like a fragile vase. One by one we fell like flies, and so did our months of hard work.

In our lowest moment, Serge said to us “We have hit rock bottom, experienced the worst. There’s nothing more that can be thrown at us, there’s only one way to go from here, UP.” He was smiling when he said that.

In his hard-to-understand Russian accent, I understood what he wanted to tell us. As head coach, that was his way of reaffirming his team, to rise, to succeed. That was his way of telling us that we can do it.

It is within this journey of green and gold that I realised one thing. That if you wish to succeed, you have to be willing to fail. You have to dare. You have to face adversity to rise victorious. The road to success is in your mindset, and the mindset of your team. It makes all the difference.

It is that mindset that was shared between Palmy, Serge and the Auroras team. The very same mindset that took us (CYSM) from ground zero, when we were struggling to compete in local regattas to medalling at AusChamps. It is what the winners live by.

This is the mindset that will accompany us through hardship. The mindset that has us striving to lift heavier, run faster, paddle harder every day, constantly challenging the status quo. A mindset of a winning team, and within itself are champions.

To anyone who wishes to succeed in passion, may this motivate you to dig deeper, reach further and drive harder.

Do not fear failure but rather fear not trying. Your team empowers you. Your aspirations make you fearless! Put yourself in a position of no return, your body can stand almost anything, it is your mind you have to overcome. You will rise triumphant. A forced adaptation, both physical and mental.

Success breeds success. In the boat, we are only as good as our weakest link. It is the unity of the crew, from bench one to bench ten that propels us forward, as one.

May we aim far together, fall together, only to rise better, stronger, transcending our former selves. It is that which builds a great team.

Your fellow teammate

Yuan