Bryony Lawrence has an impressive amount of dedication to rowing.

Her latest achievement was attending the recent Great Britain senior trials in Boston.

It shouldn’t be a surprise that she did rather well – she came eighth overall in the women’s lightweight’s category and was the highest ranking under-23.

“The trials were really good,” said Bryony.

“I was really happy with how I did – I couldn’t be happier with my result really.

“My coach Will and I travelled there the night before. On the Saturday morning, we sat a five-kilometre water assessment. We were then ranked based on how well we did.”

Bryony certainly isn’t short of rowing experience.

“I’ve been rowing for four and a bit years. I joined a little local club for a bit of fun, but I soon had a passion for it,” she said.

“I realised that I needed more support because I wanted to take it seriously. The club, Greenbank Falmouth, was more for fun – people would just turn up to give it a go.”

Just in case you needed further proof of her commitment, Bryony actually left her home in Cornwall at 16 in order to get the help she needed to pursue her dream.

“I saw that Hartpury College, where I currently attend, had a really good rowing programme. I do this as part of my course, Exercise Science and Nutrition,” she said.

“Their start programme is really good as well. It’s great for people who don’t really know what they want to do. If you’re big and tall, then it’s definitely worth a try.

“It’s a great starting point and provides a pathway to the Olympic team. You can start from age 15 onwards.”

Bryony is definitely enjoying college.

“I train in the morning, fitting it around my lectures. There’s such great support and coaching at Hartpury – it’s all been a success so far,” she said.

“We’ve managed to win some great national titles.

“It took me about a year to get the hang of the technique properly, but I managed to improve well.

“In my first year at Hartpury, we competed in the Home Internationals and won for England.

“In my second year, we won the Schools Head of River Women’s Henley Royal Regatta.

“We were also national school’s world junior champions. We ended up coming fourth, which was so annoying because we were 0.004 seconds off coming third.”

It’s clear that Bryony is good at what she does.

And she has the mindset to match.

“I just want to be the best I can be,” she said.

“For me it’s all a process. There is pressure to do well from my parents and my coach; my achievements are a direct result of the training he gives me, so I’m keen to do well for him.

“I’ll always put pressure on myself too, but it’s so important to enjoy it.

“We’re taught to just focus on improving ourselves. When you’re constantly improving yourself, you can win.

“The Olympics are the dream for most people. If that’s what I’m meant to do, that’s what I’ll do. I just want to train as hard as possible and be the best I can be.

“I’ve got quite a few years until I’ll be competing in World Championships; as I’m still an under-23, the pressure isn’t too bad. I want to go to the World Championships now though.”

This talented rower has some useful advice for people just getting started with rowing.

“Make sure to enjoy it – you’ll get the bug. Keep going, but don’t do too much too soon,” said Bryony.

“Come to Hartpury, it’s so good! Just have fun and don’t put too much pressure on yourself.

“Training isn’t very fun, but it feels so good when you win something. Being in a crew boat is also really nice. We’re all together and it feels really good.”

So, what does the future hold for Bryony?

She’ll be training hard, of course, but apart from that she isn’t too sure.

“I’d quite like to do a masters in something more specific once I get this qualification,” she said.

“Apart from that, I don’t know. I’m just focusing on doing the things I love.”

That sounds like a pretty good way to live.