William Reilly

Nationality: GBR Height: 175cm
Course BA in Medicine
College Balliol College
University Oxford
Status Undergraduate
Role Rower

About William:

What is your reason for your course choice?

More interesting and important/meaningful than a desk job

When, where and why did you start rowing? And what do you love about the sport?

I started in my first year at uni rowing for my college, because I felt it would be daft not to take advantage of the opportunity that I might not get again! Then as I have slowly improved, I’ve gradually gotten more hooked. So far my favourite rowing experience has been the Summer Eights campaign with my college’s first boat – our results weren’t the best but the camaraderie was brilliant

What was your first rowing club and coach?

Balliol college boat club. Coached by Toby Lassen of Oxford Brookes and GB U23s

What or who was the earliest sporting inspiration you remember as a child?

Probably Sir Ben Ainslie in the Olympics and the America’s Cup; some inspiring comebacks

What sport did you prioritise growing up?

Hockey

What is your favourite non-academic book?

East of Eden – John Steinbeck

What is your dream job? Or what do you aspire to do once you complete your studies?

I’d like to make an impact working in an analytical sense. Perhaps for companies like Google Deepmind or my own computational startup

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