Eleanor Baldi
SUCCESS came unexpectedly to
Eleanor Baldi.
The 18yearold rower and musician began her hobbies purely for fun, but as her confidence grew she started to become a little less surprised by her achievements.
She first started rowing in year 11 and while the early morning starts were hard to adjust to, she quickly found herself enjoying it.
‘‘It’s hard to stop once you like it.’’ In her first season she saw little success, but last year started placing higher.
Her confidence was building, but it still came as a surprise when she unexpectedly landed second place in the U18 single sculls at the Aon Maadi Cup. ‘‘That was really, really exciting.’’
The more she did, the more confident she became and this year she placed first in the women’s intermediate single sculls at the New Zealand Rowing Champs.
She always enjoys spending time outdoors and rowing allows her to both exercise and enjoy the experience of being out on the lake alone or with a team.
Her passion for the outdoors is why she is considering a career in geography or environmental management, as she could help maintain the environment she enjoys.
While the mornings were dedicated to rowing, after school she practised her music.
She has played the clarinet for about seven years and the saxophone for three.
The instruments offer a different style of fun, but she finds herself drawn to the saxophone more.
She never planned to take up the sax, but while practising for the school show the music teacher announced they were down a sax player and she offered to take up the spot.
While she plays for the school orchestra, she enjoys the range and style of jazz more.
She plays in the school jazz band and the smaller combo band and after performing at the the Dunedin Youth Jazz Festival she was shocked to receive an award for the most promising tenor saxophone player.