Ottilie Robinson-Shaw
Freestyle Kayaking
Bio
Bio
How I started
I have always loved the water and being outside. When I was 11 I visited an open day at a rowing club and whilst there saw about 30 kids in brightly coloured kayaks having a massive amount of fun. I quickly forgot about rowing, began kayaking with local clubs, and just fell in love with the sport.In the early days, I paddled every week in the swimming pool with Tendering Canoe Club and enjoyed exhausting adventures on local rivers in the summer.
At Sudbury Canoe Club, I was very lucky to enjoy paddling with young members of the GB Freestyle Kayaking team every Saturday and was introduced to the world of competitive freestyle kayaking and white water paddling at the Lee Valley White Water Centre (Home of the 2012 Olympics) and Nottingham’s Holme Pierrepont National WaterSports Centre.
I first competed when I was 12 and the sport quickly became a huge passion. I paddled as much as I could and at 14, I was selected for Team GB to compete at the 2016 European Championships in Germany. As the youngest competitor at the event, I was delighted to take home a bronze medal but I knew I could have done more and a competitive fire was fully lit as a result.
Ever since I have dedicated most of my time to training, pushing my limits and seeing how good I can become but still foremost enjoying the water, the outdoors and having fun.
My Greatest Challenge
In 2018 I tore my ACL (a ligament in my knee) wakeboarding a week before the British Championships.I could barely walk and my knee was double its usual size but I couldn’t resist the desire to compete and managed to retain my title.
I then took some time to rest and rehab to try to avoid surgery. My physio looks after rugby players and convinced me I could function without the ACL if I put in the work to build up strength in the knee. I really wanted to avoid the surgery as some of my kayaking involves getting into ridiculously tiny boats and any long term knee issues would spell disaster.
I worked hard on my knees for 12 months in the Gym and when I fully returned to paddling I made my biggest ever progression landing new big tricks and was just so grateful to be back on the water, fit and healthy.
My Hobbies
I love most sports but especially weightlifting, wakeboarding, climbing, skiing and really enjoyed team sports at school especially netball, hockey and rounders.I am passionate about food and eating healthily is a big part of my life. A few of my favourite random things include Apples, Cheese, Sardines, Chicken, Yogurt and Chocolate covered raisins.