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Andrew Byrnes, a Bates College graduate, is a member of the Canadian men's eight crew.

ONLINE BLOG: Postcard from Beijing.

SHUNYI, China — Andrew Byrnes sits on the third seat of the Canadian men's eight crew, a team that is the defending world champion and favored by many to win Olympic gold in Beijing.

He calls himself "the new guy" on the team. Byrnes is also a Bates College graduate, in 2005 with a degree in physics. Then he went to the University of Pennsylvania and earned his master's degree in mechanical engineering.

"I knew I had to finish schooling before I got to rowing full time because it would be tough to go back after rowing," he said Monday after Canada easily won its heat race at the Shunyi Rowing-Canoeing Park – finishing more than seven seconds ahead of second-place Poland – to earn a spot in Sunday's final.

This being his first Olympics, Byrnes said he was actually glad the heat race was postponed by storms Sunday. Well, not exactly glad, but the postponement helped relax him.

The team had gone through half its warm-up and, he said, "it was a good chance to test our prerace nerves. And we got that out of the way. I think we came back of course you still have a little bit of nervousness every time you race but I think we came back today a little more better prepared."

Byrnes, 25, said he has dual citizenship, Canadian and American, but never considered trying out for the U.S. team.

He was born and raised in Toronto and will continue to live in Canada.

Besides, he said, it's not like the U.S. exactly knew who he was while he was at Bates, where his coach, Andrew Carter, is also a Canadian and steered him that way.

"The thing is, the U.S. is a lot larger," he said. "And it's a lot harder to get noticed at a small Division III school like Bates. Canada was excited to have me."

Although he and his teammates are favored, he said there's no pressure.

"There's such an amount of confidence in this boat based on the experience we have and the amount of training we've done," he said. "We've pushed each other so hard and have such a great mentality on this team, it's very confidence-inspiring. And I feel very fortunate to be rowing with these guys, being someone at his first Olympics."

MANY KNOW by now that the U.S. men's and women's eight crews have three Mainers among them. But there's another Maine connection to the U.S. rowing team at the Olympics.

Margaux Jackson, whose family moved to North Yarmouth two years ago, is the team manager. Her job is to coordinate the day-to-day activities for the athletes and to assist in the IOC drug testing.

She'll be in Beijing for the Paralympics as well, which means seven weeks total in China.

"I'll actually come back a week, do my laundry, repack and head back," she said.

Jackson was the coxswain at Colgate but knew her rowing career wouldn't go beyond college. But she loved the sport so much, she looked for another way to stay involved.

"I saw an ad for this position and thought, 'This is my dream job,' " she said. "I started a couple of days after I graduated."

She admits that she misses being personally involved in the action but is glad that rowing is still part of her life every day.

"I just try to make a positive impact any way I can," she said.

Not that she hasn't gotten into a boat recently.

At a practice earlier this year, men's coach Mike Teti heard that she had been a coxswain and told her to jump into the men's eights.

"It was the fastest I've ever gone in a boat," she said.

PLENTY OF family members were at the rowing venue. And they were as happy as their daughters that the women qualified for Sunday's finals.

"That would be an understatement," said Martha Derbyshire, the mother of Anna Goodale.

Bill Logan, Elle Logan's father, said the rowers seemed eager to get the final race done.

"They want Sunday to be here now," he said.

Staff Writer Mike Lowe can be contacted at 791-6422 or at:

mlowe@pressherald.com