A YOUNG woman from landlocked Herefordshire is gearing up to take on the challenge of a lifetime later this year.

In December this year, Ellie Reynolds and her There She Rows teammates Victoria Monk, Ana Zigic, and Molly Green, will be setting off on a 3,000-mile unassisted row across the Atlantic for the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge.

The event is an annual race of endurance in extreme conditions, where crews face 40-foot waves, sleep-deprivation and sea-sickness as they row two hours on, two hours off for 40 days to cross from the Canary Islands to Antigua.

The There She Rows team are gearing up to row the Atlantic

The There She Rows team are gearing up to row the Atlantic

The team's mission is not confined to rowing the Atlantic, but also to inspire women and girls to conquer their own ‘Atlantic Ocean’ and be active.

Athlete Ellie said: “As an athlete I recognise my privilege in what I’ve achieved in the last few years. I’ve got the facilities, the funds, the support around me, and I’ve got the people I look up to and the inspiration to do things. I wish everyone could have the same opportunities I’ve had – I want to make a difference and be a force for driving equality.

“All the skills and lessons sport teaches you – confidence, teamwork, leadership – are so valuable in both your personal life and professional life.

Ellie, 24, has already worked with 10Ironwomen on a campaign for resetting the gender imbalances in endurance triathlon events.

Born and raised in Allensmore, Ellie says she was always keen to try all the sports at school but never considered herself the athletic type. She took up triathlon whilst at Cardiff university and has become a hugely successful amateur, with several podium finishes and three full distance Ironman races under her belt.

After qualifying for and racing the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii, in October 2022, she has been invited to speak at various events as an inspirational figure.

“I’ve pushed myself to my limits in one sport so it’s time to go and find them in another,” she said.

The team members started off as strangers with different sporting backgrounds, but were united by their lust for adventure and urge to run the campaign.

The There She Rows team will be rowing to Antigua

The There She Rows team will be rowing to Antigua

“We hope that if we can cross the Atlantic Ocean in a tiny 30-foot rowing boat powered by nothing but the four women on board, we will stand as an inspiration for girls and women everywhere to show that you can do anything you want to do,” team captain Victoria said.

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“That doesn’t need to be crossing an ocean. Your challenge might be joining a netball team for the first time, or putting on your running shoes and signing up for that half marathon you’ve wanted to do.”

Statistics show that girls drop out of sports at 1.5 times the rate of boys by the time they reach age 14, and more than half of all girls will have stopped taking part in sport altogether by age 17, the team said.

“Sport is something that we all feel hugely passionate about and hope that this campaign can help to shift the dial on some of those issues,” Victoria said.

TSR will be supporting the Women’s Sport Trust, Teenage Cancer Trust and Endometriosis UK, once their costs have been covered.

If you wish to sponsor or donate, head to Instagram @theresherows, and if you’re interested in Ellie’s journey from ‘total newbie’ to ocean rower, she’s documenting the highs and lows on @ellies.row.journal

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