Interviews with UCLA Athletes
Athletics are an essential part of life on campus. Athletes work hard at both their sport and school. We have interviewed four athletes from UCLA asking about their experience at UCLA thus far. Click on a button to be directed to an interview with an athlete that plays that sport!
Matthew King (men's Rowing)
Anticipated Graduation: Spring 2020
Major: Biology
When did you start rowing?
"I started rowing senior year of high school for Oakland Strokes and then started rowing at UCLA my freshman year."
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What has been your favorite moment of being a part of the UCLA rowing team?
"My favorite moment of being a part of the UCLA rowing team was winning the B final sophomore year at ACRA, our national championships. While not close to winning a national title, it felt special and surreal to win the final against so many other schools across the country. My pair partner Sean Pierce and I rowed our best race as a pair, and it was even more meaningful because it was his last race of college. It was an amazing feeling."
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What has been the hardest part of balancing school life and practices/games?
"Time management. Coming into freshman year I had a hard time prioritizing study hours and sleep hours, instead spending time doing other things like playing videogames or watching tv. While those activities are fun in moderation, I definitely let them take up time I should have been studying or sleeping. Figuring out how to balance sleep and studying made everything easier, and actually gave me more time to have a social life once I learned when to prioritize academics and my personal health."
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What are your main motivations for doing athletics?
"I enjoy the competition and the structure provided by being a part of the rowing team. I accomplish more with my day, I get regular sleep, and I am in great shape. The life balance I have when doing athletics is an enviable one."
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What do you feel are your main strengths in athletics?
"I am good about not missing practice. I rarely miss practice, which allows me to continue to work hard each day. Being accountable to my teammates and continuing to show up are traits I think are important to any sports team, but especially in the sport of rowing with how it is such a team sport."
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Do you often have time to socialize?
"Practice is a great time to socialize with people, and I have a lot of friends on the team so traveling for races is one way I spend time with my closest friends. I do get to socialize outside of rowing and class though. Getting better at time management throughout college has made socializing easier."
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What did you gain from being on this team?
"These guys are my best friends. It's my home away from home. I gain so much each day from getting to work with them towards a common goal, and I feel myself growing everyday from the challenge and the opportunity. This community is my favorite part of being in college."
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What's your role on the team?
"I am the team captain. I view that role as an emotional leader, since we have such a large leadership structure for an athletic team. I help to run efficient practices and make myself available as a friend and confidant for when my teammates are struggling and need a helping hand."
What's your greatest achievement as an athlete?
"My greatest achievement as an athlete would be placing 9th at nationals in the pair, which is the race I mentioned above with Sean Pierce. We had the 6th fastest time of the day while winning the B final, and it was the best race for the two of us that season. Definitely a memorable win, even if we didn't win it all."
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What other sports did you play through your life thus far?
"I played a lot of basketball growing up, and played a little football and did martial arts."
Sara mittman (women's Rowing)
Anticipated Graduation: Spring 2023
Major: Chemical Engineering
When did you start rowing?
Fall 2019.
"What has been your favorite moment of being a part of the UCLA rowing team?
My favorite moments on the team are finishing a tough practice or race piece after my teammates and I know we gave it our all, and the results showed."
What has been the hardest part of balancing school life and practices/meets?
"The hardest part is staying focused within the different facets of my life. When I’m at practice, I get distracted by thinking about the amount of homework and studying I have to do. When I am doing homework, I catch myself daydreaming about rowing, anticipating an upcoming time trial or wondering how I can improve my performance."
What are your main motivations for doing athletics?
"To be a part of a tightly-knit community and to build my physical strength and mental discipline. "
What do you feel are your main strengths in athletics?
"Patience (keeping my progress in perspective and knowing that improvement takes hard work and time) and consistency (avoiding drastic highs or lows, riding in the middle)."
Do you often have time to socialize?
"Yes. Even practice serves as a social break from academics."
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What did you gain from being on this team?
"Confidence, gratitude, an optimistic attitude"
What's your role on the team?
"As a first-year walk-on, my role is to be the best follower and hardest worker I can be, hopefully encouraging the other walk-ons to do their best as well."
What's your greatest achievement as an athlete?
"Surviving four years of high school swim even though I sink like a rock."
What other sports did you play through your life thus far?
"CrossFit, weightlifting, swimming"
Nathan Robbins (dragon boat)
Anticipated Graduation: Spring 2023
Major: Biology
When did you start to dragon boat?
I started the first few weeks of freshman year. I got fliered at the Enormous Activities Fair, went to tryouts and never looked back!
What has been your favorite moment of being a part of the dragon boat team thus far?
Our first race, which was in San Francisco. It was extremely cold and foggy, and the race conditions were crazy. The insane conditions brought our team together and we ended up doing really well!
What has been the hardest part of balancing school life and practices/meets?
Having practice during the week can make getting homework done difficult, but I’ve learned to plan ahead and work around practices.
What are your main motivations for doing athletics?
Three main reasons- a desire to compete and do well, staying fit and in shape, and the amazing community of the Dragonboat team.
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What do you feel are your main strengths in athletics?
Definitely my endurance and running ability. I ran cross country in high school which gave me an advantage in those areas!
Do you often have time to socialize?
I do! The team makes social connection a priority and we always
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What did you gain from being on this team?
I gained an amazing and supportive community. It might be cliche, but the team really is a family.
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What's your role on the team?
As a newbie, my role is to learn the technique and skills of the sport and become an active part of the team.
What's your greatest achievement as an athlete?
After all the hard work our newbie team put into the college cup season, we won our division at the race! It was a team achievement, and in a team sport those are all that matter.
What other sports did you play through your life?
I have run track and cross country and played football, golf and soccer.
Amber Tien (cheerleading)
Anticipated Graduation: Spring 2023
Major: Communication/Psychology
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What did you gain from being on this team?
The biggest thing I’ve gained from being on this team have been the friends I’ve made. I’ve met so many amazing people and they’ve become some of my best friends
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What's your role on the team?
I’m a flyer, my team is coed so all the girls are flyers and the guys are bases
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What's your greatest achievement as an athlete?
Honestly just making the UCLA cheer team has been my biggest accomplishment, making a college cheer team is one of the biggest pinnacles in the cheerleading world so I’m really proud of that.
What other sports did you play through your life?
I’ve played soccer and also ran track/cross country
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When did you start rowing?
I started cheering in 6th grade
What has been your favorite moment of being a part of the UCLA rowing team?
My favorite moment was cheering on UCLA football as they won their first home game against ASU this season
What has been the hardest part of balancing school life and practices/meets?
The hardest part has been finding a way to manage my time, as the time commitment for being on the cheer team is quite a lot. Combined with school work, trying to prioritize things and figure out my hectic schedule has been pretty hard
What are your main motivations for doing athletics?
I do athletics to stay healthy and active, but also because I feel passionate about my sport. Cheerleading has been a huge part of my life for a long time
What do you feel are your main strengths in athletics?
I feel my main strengths are being a team player. After being a member of some school’s cheer team for so long, I’ve learned how to work effectively in a team environment
Do you often have time to socialize?
I do have time to socialize. Socializing is my break from school/my sport, so it’s really important for me to spend time with my friends as a way to destress.
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