Sarah Anne Tait (née Outhwaite; 23 January 1983 – 3 March 2016) was an Australian rower - a national and world champion, three-time Olympian and Olympic-medal winner. She was the first mother to represent Australia in rowing at Olympic level, having returned to international competition following the birth of her daughter.[2]
Early life
Tait was born in Perth, Western Australia, one of four children of Simon and Barbara Outhwaite.[3] She was educated at St Hilda's Anglican School for Girls in Perth.[4] She began rowing in 1997, at the age of 14.[4] Tait's first rowing success was in 2000, aged 17, when she won a silver medal in the junior women's four at the World Junior Rowing Championships in Zagreb, Croatia.[3]
Club and state rowing career
Tait's senior rowing was initially from the Swan River Rowing Club in Perth and later from the Mercantile Rowing Club in Melbourne.
She was selected in representative Western Australian senior women's eights competing for the Queen's Cup in the Interstate Regatta at the Australian Championships on nine occasions between 2001 and 2007. She stroked that eight in 2012. In 2003 she also raced in the West Australian youth eight who were victorious in contesting the Bicentennial Cup at the Interstate Regatta. This put her in the unique position of having represented in her state's senior women's eight for two years before she rowed in the youth eight.[5]
Wearing Swan River RC colours she contested national Australian titles at the Australian Rowing Championships on a number of occasions. She won a national title in coxless pair in 2005 with Natalie Beal. She contested the coxless four in 2005 and 2006 and the women's eight in composite Western Australian crews in 2005, 2006 and 2007.[5]
Tait was picked as captain of the Australian women's rowing team at the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games, and at the 2010 and 2011 World Rowing Championships.[3][10]
Three months after the 2008 Olympics, Tait became pregnant with her first child. As she was determined to compete in the 2012 Olympics, she continued to train up until the last three weeks of pregnancy, and returned to her training schedule five months after giving birth.[7] At around this time, Rowing Australia changed their policy on family visits to athletes, enabling children to visit their parents while training and competing;[7] Tait was credited with inspiring this change.[11]
Tait announced her retirement from competitive rowing on 26 February 2014, as she had been diagnosed with cervical cancer after the birth of her second child eleven months earlier. Although she had initially returned to rowing after undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatment, she was later advised to retire from the sport to undergo further treatment.[12]
