Hands on role helps medal success ROTORUA REVIEW 22.8.12

Photo; Ellen Pope( far right)

25yr old Ellen Pope was one of the two massage therapists assigned to the Rowing NZ Elite Rowing Team for three months up to and including the  2012 London Olympics. Among those rowers assigned to Ellen were gold medal winning double scullers; Joseph Sullivan and Nathan Cohen .

“It was great to be part of the team and play a small role. The rowers are a really great group of people-laid back and lovely athletes to work with”.

Ellen said the massage therapists work was more maintenance based.

“What we tried to do was to help maintain them at a level so they could continue to train.”                  

Ellen Pope was a well-performed rower in her teenage years at Rotorua Lakes High School and represented New Zealand at the 2005 Youth Olympics in Sydney, where she was awarded a Silver medal in the Women’s lightweight double sculls and Bronze in the Women’s eight .

She also competed in the 2005 U21 Youth Cup as part of the South Island Academy and was awarded a Bronze medal in the Women’s Lightweight double sculls .    

She gained her Batchelor of Health Studies in massage and neuromuscular therapy at the NZ College of Massage in Auckland and worked for the first time with the Elite rowing team after the 2010 World Champs in Karapiro. She spent 10 weeks with the team on its European Campaign in the World Champs in Slovenia. She will now turn her attention to her Rotorua clients though she may be back with Rowing NZ in October when the summer programme starts again.