Recent William Smith graduate Elisa Faiola helped the U.S. women's rowing team capture a gold medal in the women's eight at the 2024 FISU World University Championships Rowing. Contested in Rotterdam, Netherlands, July 4-6, the championships featured the top student-athletes ages 18-25 from around the world.
 
"Winning this gold medal was one of the highlights of my rowing career," Faiola said. "My team and I worked very hard in the short time we had together, so crossing the finish line first was one of the best feelings. I'm very grateful I got the opportunity to race at the World University Championships and represent the United States. It's an experience I will never forget."
 
Faiola and the American eight began racing on July 4 in the second heat against the Netherlands and Norway. They led from the start of the race and traversed the 2,000-meter course with a time of 6:52.97, securing a spot in the grand final. Netherlands crossed the line second, just under four seconds later.  Having won their heat, the United States advanced directly to Final A on July 6.
 

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In the medal race, the Americans competed against Italy, Canada, Germany India and Norway. The Canadians were first off the line and led the race at the midway point. The United States used a strong third 500 to take the lead and finished first to claim the gold medal with a time of 6:21.64. Italy was second six-tenths of a second later. Canada took home the bronze.
 
"Coming together with women from all across the country with different rowing backgrounds was challenging at first, but with an endless number of hours practicing in the boat throughout the month, we brought it together very well," Faiola added. "You have to be capable of making changes and also be a gritty athlete in scenarios like this to mesh well with the other athletes around you."
 
The FISU World University Championships are either single sport or small cluster events that are held in years opposite the FISU World University Games. Both events are hosted by the International University Sports Federation.
 
A four-year member of the Herons' top boat, Faiola holds the program's 5,000-meter erg record. This season she competed in the four seat, helping the Herons win a bronze medal at the Liberty League Championships. Faiola was named a first team All-American by the College Rowing Coaches Association and was a finalist for the organization's Athlete of the Year Award. She was also a two-time first team All-Liberty League selection.
 
Faiola credits her time at William Smith with preparing her for this summer's World University Championships.
 
"I think that learning the sport at William Smith prepared me very well for this. At camp this summer, we would have practices 2 -3 times a day, which was overwhelming at times, but at William Smith, I was encouraged to test my limits continuously and step out of my comfort zone. I believe this aspect of my training there set me up well to thrive at camp and be a part of a boat that won a gold medal.
 
"At William Smith, we also had a sports psychologist, Dr. Mann, who mentored our team on the power of positive self-talk and how to manage the mental challenges that come with being a high-performing athlete. These tools we learned guided me through all the nerves and emotions of racing on the international stage for the very first time. Being on the starting line with other countries instead of local colleges was quite the change, but this is where I had to trust in my training and believe that I was capable of doing hard things."