T-Birds alumni win second straight women’s eight Olympic medal in Paris

Canada’s Women’s Rowing Eight team, including UBC Thunderbirds alumni Kristina Walker (BCom’21), Kristin Kit, and Jessica Sevick (MSc’22), secured silver at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on August 3, 2024, bringing the total count of Olympic medals won by current and former T-Birds to 67.

The Canadian team completed the 2,000 metres in five minutes and 58.84 seconds at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium in France, narrowly edging out Great Britain by just 0.67 seconds.

“I'm so grateful for each one of these women you see on TV because honestly, I couldn’t have done it without them,” said Kit to CBC in a TV interview. “But I’m here because of them. And, Canada, remember these faces, because they are heroes.”

Kit, who served as the coxswain, was one of four members returning from the Tokyo 2021 championship crew. This year, she was accompanied by fellow T-Birds Kristina Walker and Jessica Sevick, both of whom were part of UBC’s national championship team in 2018.

After securing third place in the qualifier on Monday, the team advanced to the final through a repechage on Thursday, repeating their path from Tokyo.

In the final, Canada faced a close battle with Great Britain for second place with 500 metres to go but managed to hold their position and secure the silver medal.

“Here’s the thing about Canada women, you can’t count us out until it’s done,” added Kit.

At the head of the pack was the Romanian team, who put on a dominant performance to lock in the gold finish four seconds in front of the Canadians.

Reflecting on her time with the Canadian Rowing team, Kit shared her thoughts on retirement with a heartfelt message.

“I’m so grateful because this group of women, they allowed me to be myself, you know, and I found confidence,” she said.

“I’ve always had imposter syndrome, and they allow me to have confidence and be myself. And they push me. Don’t get me wrong. They push me and they give me feedback, and then they give me more feedback. But, at the end of the day, like this group of women, I want this to be my last group. My last team. They’re my — they’re my heart boat.”