In her Lower year at Andover, Caroline Lind ’02 switched her spring sport to crew after breaking her nose playing softball. Just eight years later — on the world’s biggest stage — Lind cruised into rowing history with seven other United States rowers to claim a gold medal in the women’s eight at the Beijing Olympics. Lind, a Phelps Scholar from Greensboro, North Carolina, was the seven seat in the women’s rowing squad that finished the 2000 meter race in 6 minutes, 5.34 seconds, the first gold in the event for the U.S. women in 24 years. The Netherlands finished nearly two seconds behind for silver with a time of 6:07.22. As an athlete at Andover, Lind’s talent was clear early almost immediately. She was captain of the Girls Water Polo team and a member of Varsity Basketball. Her true talent was clear in crew, however, making the first boat on the varsity team after just four weeks of practice. In 2000, Lind was part of the Andover team that won the New England Championship. Coach Kathryn Green, who coached Andover to that championship season, recalls just how impressive Lind was: “Even as a complete novice, she could already pull one of the top erg scores on the team,” said Green. “She was bigger and stronger than anyone I had ever coached.” “After only a few weeks on the water, she was already rowing pretty effectively, and it was obvious that she had fallen in love with the sport,” continued Green. Lind thrived for the next two years on Andover’s first boat, leading the team to a second-place finish in the New England Championship in 2001. After her graduation in 2002, Lind attended Princeton University. At Princeton, she rowed for the varsity team and became involved with crew at the international level. The 2008 Olympic were the chance to shine for the United States women’s eight, entering the Games with thoughts of gold on its mind. The team’s biggest obstacle was Romania, which had won the event at the three previous Olympics. After the final race on August 17, Lind, who kept a blog tracking her experiences throughout the games, wrote about what it felt like to win a gold medal: “I am still in shock from our victory,” she wrote. “I believed in my heart that we could do it, and we did. However, the real gravity of this experience, being at the Olympics and winning a gold medal, does not sink in all at once.” She continued, “Whole states and hometowns are behind us, rooting for us. And I think we used that energy and excitement to help propel us down the course ahead of Romania!” Said Green of Lind’s accomplishment, “I remember telling people that she would be probably win an Olympic medal some day. I think we can just feel enormously proud to have her as an alumna of the school and of our team.”
