Feature
Find balance and embrace every opportunity Sasha and Harrison School Captains
Carey alum James Tomkins OAM OLY (1983) is a six-time Olympic rower, making him one of only four rowers worldwide to compete in this many Olympic Games. He is Australia‘s most decorated oarsman, having won three Olympic gold medals, seven World Championships and one Commonwealth Games gold medal, among many others. James was in the stroke seat – the important pacesetting seat at the stern of the boat – of the ‘Oarsome Foursome’. This crew was a coxless four, meaning there was no coxswain in the boat (the person usually responsible for navigation and steering) making the stroke position all the more important. The Oarsome Foursome rose to fame after winning gold in consecutive Olympic Games in 1992 and 1996. Tomkins is now a father and successful businessman and remains connected with the Olympics through serving on the Australian Olympic Committee as well as being a part of the International Olympic Athletes‘ Commission. More locally, he assists and promotes the Firbank Grammar School rowing program.
8 | Torch
Sasha: What was the biggest highlight of your time at Carey? James: It would be all the friends that I made. I still catch up with them. I think when you do something meaningful with your friends and you’re aiming for a collective goal, you remember those experiences. I don‘t remember who I sat next to in science, but I remember who I sat in front of and behind in rowing. For me, the sport at Carey was a big thing – footy and rowing. My highlight would have been the friends I made through that. Harrison: What were your interests at school? James: My interests were sport, that was it. I didn‘t really appreciate the opportunities of going to a school like Carey while I was at school, but then as soon as you leave, you sort of do realise. But I certainly took advantage of any sport that I could do. I was good academically, but maybe I could have applied myself a little bit more to my academics. I just love being active and I loved lunchtimes, just playing.
The notion of Olympism is to have a balanced life of mind, body and soul. At the games 2500 years ago, when they first started, they were all into that: academics for the mind, athletics for the body, arts for the soul.
