Twenty-two-year-old Adam Kachyckyj looks set to continue Australia’s golden rowing tradition. Having risen through the Queensland junior elite and youth training squads and the open age Penrith Cup, Kachyckyj competed on the international stage for the first time at the 2010 Under-23 World Championships in lightweight double scull. “The experience showed me what rowing for your country is all about,” he reflects. “It was my most outstanding personal achievement; the culmination of a lot of hard work and sacrifice which finally paid off.”

Adam Kachyckyj spreads his wings at the Under-23 World Champs in Belarus. Adam Kachyckyj spreads his wings at the Under-23 World Champs in Belarus
Image: Richard Wearne

Adam Who? 

Despite not finishing the Under-23 World Champs on the medals podium, Kachyckyj (pronounced Car-zits-key, courtesy of this Ukrainian father) still learnt plenty from the meet. Consequently, at the national championships last March, he blitzed rivals to win the Under-23 lightweight pair and four races. This impressive run of form continued at the Australian selection regatta in April, where he won two lightweight pair races. A glowing endorsement by John Bowes, Kachyckyj’s coach

at Brisbane’s Commercial Rowing Club (CRC), suggests on each occasion there was nobody more deserving of victory. “He’s a terrific athlete ... he covers all the bases,” Bowes says. “He’s a super-dedicated, naturally good athlete and is low-maintenance, which is unusual,” he jokes.

With the 2011 Under-23 World Championships scheduled for July in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Bowes is convinced Kachyckyj, who’ll compete in the lightweight coxless four, will do his country proud. “He’s been training the house down. This is a really big year for him and I expect him to be in medal contention.”

What’s his story? 

Adam Kachyckyj attended St Joseph’s Nudgee College, a Queensland private school renowned for churning out many notable sporting alumni. There, he played rugby union and football, but the opportunity to take up rowing arose in unusual circumstances for a young Aussie sportsman. “I got into rowing at the end of year eight when I was 13,” Kachyckyj recalls. “The main perpetrator behind this was mum. She told me I couldn’t play cricket because it was too boring,” he laughs.

After being taken under the oar of former Olympic and three-time world champion rower Gary Lynagh at Nudgee College, Kachyckyj never looked back, despite an at-first shy foray into competitive rowing. “Adam was pretty quiet and a bit reserved,” Lynagh remembers. “He went about doing what he had to do without too much fuss.” Kachyckyj attributes his impressive work ethic to Lynagh, who “taught me what rowing’s all about and what it takes to achieve your goals”. Clearly humbled, Lynagh’s proud to have helped aid the development of Australia’s most promising young lightweight rower. “He’s got the right frame of mind to be a great athlete,” says Lynagh. “Some people want instant results and success, but he’s stuck at it. Now the results are coming.”

Who’s he like?

Kachyckyj reminds Bowes of one of Australia’s most successful rowers from the ‘90s, who coincidentally was also a member at CRC. “He reminds me a lot of his old high-school coach, Gary Lynagh,” Bowes says. “He has a very similar physique and he’s probably stronger, which will help.” The comparison is a huge rap for Kachyckyj, but Bowes is adamant his judgement is accurate. “If he gets the breaks he’ll be as successful as Lynagh.”

– Taku Taneka

What do they say?

There are a lot of elite athletes you work with, but you wouldn’t otherwise give them the time of day. Adam’s not one of them. He’s got so much potential.”

‒ John Bowes, coach at Commercial RC.

“He has a very good feel for the rowing stroke. He also has a good mindset. He’s got his best in front of him.”

‒ Gary Lynagh, former Olympic and three-time world champion rower.