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Sport:     Rowing - Women's Heavyweight Rowing   Community:     London, ON   Languages:     English   Why the environment is important to me:     I am involved in a sport that requires me to train outdoors for a good majority of the year. Air quality is an important factor that can increase or inhibit the quality of my training. In addition to the air quality, being that I am a rower, water quality is also of significant importance to me. The lake that we train on in London, Ontario is continually being closed each summer due to an overgrowth of blue-green algae. This "pollutant" is the result of the fertilizer being used by neighboring golf courses that eventually is run-off into the lake when we have summer rain storms. The algae causes the lake to become almost soup like in it's consistency and produces an offensive smell that can be toxic if inhaled in large quantities. Not only does it kill the fish that live in the lake, it hinders our teams ability to train in proper conditions. The water is "slower" due to the thick consistency, which could be the difference between us being allowed to compete that summer in the World Championships or not based on the time trial race pieces that determine our boat speed based on the world's best time standards. Overall I feel that the environment is something that we have abused and must actively work to rebuild and leave better than we found it.   Why I'm a Clean Air Champion:     As an elite athlete health issues and environmental issues that relate to health issues play an important role in my daily activities. Canada has a worldwide reputation for providing a living environment for canadian citizens that is clean and proactive in protecting it's natural resources. While we continue to lead a good example worldwide, there are many areas in which we fall short. Obesity is a comorbidity that has come to plague North America, including Canada and many other countries around the world. Through adopting a more sedentary lifestyle and by consuming an over-indulgent diet, the health of Canadians has been significantly lowered. I believe that as an elite athlete, CAC promotes the healthy lifestyle that I lead and encourages other Canadians to do the same.		View full size image

Career Highlights
	Introducing Cristin McCarty:
		I began rowing in the summer of 1999 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. I have always been involved in a variety of sports but rowing was the one that I fell in love with. Nothing compares to the serenity of a quiet, early morning row as you watch the sun rise. In 2000, I was selected to participate in Junior National development camp (CanAmMex - a regatta between Canada, USA, Mexico and other countries surrounding Mexico) where I raced the 1x, 2x and 4x. From my junior career I continued on to obtain a rowing scholarship from the University of Michigan where I rowed for 4 years and graduated with an undergraduate degree in Zoology-Anthropology and a Masters in Public Health with a specialization in Human Nutrition and Dietetics. In 2006, I was named to the Senior A National Team for Canada where I travelled to Eton, England to race in the women's 4-. The following year in 2007 I was named to the PanAm team and travelled to Rio de Janerio, Brazil to compete in the women's 2x and 4x where we won silver and gold respectively. In 2008 I was selected to be a member of the Olympic Camp and trained throughout the year trying to obtain a spot for the Olympics in Beijing. I was instead named to the Senior A team that would travel to the World Championships in Lintz, Austria to compete in the women's 4- where we placed 5th overall. Currently I am beginning a PhD at the University of Western Ontario within Kinesiology with a focus in sports nutrition and sports injuries.
	Top performances:
		Finished 5th in the women's 4- at the World Championships in 2008 Won Gold in the Women's 4x and Silver in the Women's 2x at the 2007 PanAm Games Finished 7th in the women's 4- at the World Championships in 2006 Was a scholar-athlete for 4 years at the University of Michigan 2002-2006
	Career and interests:
		Student
	Contact:
		Send a message to Cristin
	Visit Cristin's web site:
	To learn more about Cristin's sport, visit:
		www.rowingcanada.org
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