Gold medalist Scott hopes to encourage girls to stay in sport after receiving the MBE award

Northern Ireland’s Olympic hero Hannah Scott spoke of her desire to encourage young girls to stay in sport and was proud to have been made an MBE.

The gold medalist from Coleraine was part of the Team GB women’s quadruple sculls team that triumphed in Paris over the summer, overtaking the Dutch boat in the final stroke of a dramatic finale at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium.

Her crewmates Lauren Henry, Lola Anderson and Georgie Brayshaw also became Members of the Order of the British Empire in the New Year Honours.

Scott’s gold medal was the first won by a Northern Irish athlete in more than 50 years as she emulated Mary Peters’ success for GB in the pentathlon in Munich in 1972.

Their victory came during the Games, which were unprecedentedly successful for Northern Ireland, with the region winning a total of four gold medals.

Swimmer Jack McMillan also topped the podium for Team GB, while fellow swimmer Daniel Wiffen and gymnast Rhys McClenaghan won gold for Team Ireland.

Scott, who learned to row at Bann Rowing Club in Coleraine but now lives in Maidenhead in England, said she hoped gaining an MBE would provide young girls with further evidence of what can be achieved through sport.

“I’m proud, it’s a very nice surprise,” she told the PA news agency.

“From a young age, I didn’t realize that rowing would lead me to such honors.

“But I think it just shows that you just have to follow what you love. And for me that was sport.

“And hopefully more young girls can realize that there is actually some legitimacy to playing sports, especially as they grow up and stay true to their passion, whether it’s volleyball, hockey, rowing or running.

“It can take you on some really cool journeys and paths, and that’s exactly what I experienced. And hopefully it just shines as a symbol of just loving what you do and hopefully it can pay you back with rewards and things like that.”

Scott is passionate about inspiring teenage girls to continue playing sports, and there is evidence that many choose to stop during these years of their lives.

“I really want to make sure that young girls, especially teenagers, feel like they are supported in sports,” she said.

“I’m trying to break some avenues and create new ones for young girls from Northern Ireland to stay in sport because that’s something I think was missing growing up.

“I had to overcome many barriers to get to where I am today. And hopefully people, especially young women, can now look and think, “Maybe I could do the same thing.”

“And that’s what they should think – that’s the whole point.

“There are a lot of statistics that show that a lot of young girls, especially teenagers, are giving up sports and it is very important to me to keep them in sports because it is in sports that I learned all my life lessons and he taught me the best of my skills, from working with people and the ability to chat with anyone, and the ability to push myself and work hard and realize that it’s the transplant that gets you there.

“I think all of these things are so important, especially now in the digital age where everything is online and over phones.

“I just push myself more to get people excited about sport because I just think there is such a big mental health crisis, especially on social media, and sport is the way out in many ways.”

Scott also spoke about her love for Northern Ireland, particularly Coleraine – a town where large crowds gathered over the summer to watch her final and attend the Olympic star’s subsequent homecoming celebration.

She described rowing as a sport that has successfully overcome traditional divisions between Northern Ireland’s community.

“I’m proud of Northern Ireland, I’m proud of where I come from,” she said.

“It’s not a political thing, it’s literally about the area where I grew up.

“And that’s exactly what Bann Rowing Club was for me – it was a cross-community club and that’s why I’m so proud to put rowing on the map because the sport has brought so much into my life, especially going forward.” from Northern Ireland .

“It’s about bridging divides and bringing communities together that I didn’t know as a child, that happens quite unconsciously.

“And now I’m so proud to see it come to fruition at this point in my life, with all my friends from all schools and not just one school. That’s why I’m so proud to be from Coleraine.”

Scott, who also rowed for Princeton University in the United States, said the sight of Lady Mary Peters at her homecoming event in Coleraine was a “pinch-me moment” as she described the “privilege”, now with Northern Ireland’s original one Golden girls to be compared.

“She set the bar that it was possible,” Scott said of Lady Mary’s victory in 1972.

“For me it was very much like being in the clouds and the sky, like I never thought, ‘Oh, I’m going to do that.'” But it was my dream.

“And there was someone who had done it before, so it was entirely possible – that’s the only way I would describe it.”

She added: “It’s a huge honor to stand alongside her now because this is the woman everyone in Northern Ireland knows for her sporting achievements and her legendary status. “So it’s a joy and a privilege.”

Scott, who plans to announce in the new year whether she will seek Olympic glory again in 2028, named her parents Sharon and Mal and her former Bann coach Geoff Bones as the key people behind her sporting success. She also acknowledged her coaches at Princeton and Team GB.

“It’s definitely a nice way to end the year,” she said of the honor.

“But I don’t think it changes who I am. It’s three letters at the end of my name, but for me it’s also more about recognizing everyone around me.”

She added: “It’s pretty cool to see that there’s recognition at the end of my name, but to be honest that’s for everyone else because it doesn’t change who I am.” It doesn’t change that , who I’m with, and I’m very, very clear about that.

“It’s very nice to be recognized, but at the end of the day I’m still Hannah.

“I think it’s definitely just a very nice end to the year. But I didn’t expect that.”