From Gold to M.B.A., Lind Keeps Rowing to the Finish

Caroline Lind was not able to make it to her first night class in Management: Theory and Application (MBAD-570) this semester. As she explained to her fellow students the following week, she was taping an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show.

Lind is a 2008 U.S. Olympic gold medalist. She and her teammates on the U.S. Rowing team claimed a first-place victory at the Shunyi Olympic Rowing-Canoeing Park at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. It’s the first time since 1984, and just the second time in Olympic rowing history, that the United States won the gold medal in the women’s eight.

“I feel like I have been really blessed in my rowing career,” said Lind, a graduate student in Rider’s Master of Business Administration program. “I was lucky to be in a group of 15 amazing athletes, who were strong, awesome women.” 

Becoming an Olympic Gold Medalist was not a far-fetched dream for this Greensboro, N.C., native. As a child, Lind remembers swimming with her sister in the pool and pretending they were competing in the Olympics. “I always wanted to be at the highest level I could be,” said Lind, who has always played on athletic teams.

At the Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass., Lind played water polo and basketball. Lind remembers reading an article in The Wall Street Journal about rowing and how tall athletes were said to be good rowers. At 6 feet tall, she decided to give rowing a shot as a sophomore in 2000. That summer, Lind made the junior national team. Soon, she was invited to train with the national team each summer in Princeton, N.J. Lind had been training with the national team under Coach Tom Terhaar for four years before her debut in this summer’s Olympics.

Lind said traveling to China was a great experience, as she took in the sights and culture of Beijing, including eating real Chinese food.

“I was an Anthropology major. That’s what I love – meeting people and learning about other cultures,” said Lind, who graduated from Princeton University with a degree in Cultural Anthropology in 2006. When she was not racing, Lind also cheered on her fellow U.S. teammates during other Olympic events.

During the first race, Lind remembers being so nervous that she did not perform as well. In the final, she recalls coaching herself.

“I knew I could do it. I just had to tell myself that,” Lind recalls. “I was able to relax, mentally.” In the final race, U.S. women’s eight finished at 6:05.34, defeating The Netherlands by 1.88 seconds and Romania by 1.91 seconds.

With the 2008 Olympics behind her, Lind’s focus is now on her studies. This fall, Lind is taking four classes toward her M.B.A. Lind, who now resides in Princeton, N.J., said Rider’s location allows her to travel, practice and be close to part-time work.

Currently, Lind is cross training, which means she takes part in some type of exercise activity other than rowing for an hour and a half each day. In November, she will resume training with the rowing team.

Lind, who hopes to compete in the 2012 Olympics in London, plans to finish her M.B.A. in two years. After the Olympics, she plans to go to law school and pursue a career in discrimination law.

Because of her undergraduate background in anthropology, African and women’s studies, Lind said she understands how the world works from a humanities standpoint. An M.B.A. would allow Lind to gain a fiscal understanding of the world. “I’m really interested in economics, marketing and communications,” Lind explained. “It’s information I always wanted to have.”

As a discrimination lawyer, Lind hopes to effect change, but in order to do that, she must understand how the world works, she explained. “I want to impact people’s lives for the positive,” she added.

As an Olympic gold medalist, Lind is already doing just that by setting a good example for young children. Since returning from Beijing, Lind has shared her experiences with the girls’ swim team from her hometown, and was also asked to speak to a second-grade class.

“That’s the task I’m trying to embrace the most – being a role model,” explained Lind, who hopes to spread the word about rowing.

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