Phoebe Spoors
Phoebe Spoors started rowing at Christchurch Girls’ High School and Canterbury Rowing Club in 2007 at the age of 13.
After finishing school in 2011 she moved to Avon Rowing Club for a season before joining Southern Rowing Performance Centre for the 2012/13 summer. Phoebe then moved to the University of Washington in Seattle to join her sister Grace on the rowing team, where Phoebe completed a degree in Political Science and Communications while rowing full-time as a student-athlete. In her final year at Washington, she helped the team to win the overall National Collegiate Athletic Association title for 2017.
Following this success Phoebe returned to New Zealand being named in the 2017/18 Elite Summer Squad. She impressed observers by winning the Women’s Premier Coxless Four at the 2018 New Zealand Rowing Championships, earning herself a Red Coat and her first Premier National title. She was selected for the Elite Women’s Four for 2018, competing at World Rowing Cup II, III, also at the World Rowing Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria where the crew finished 9th.
Phoebe was in a new-look crew in 2019, and they finished the year in 11th place. Fast forward to 2021, Phoebe continued training hard throughout the uncertain period of Covid floating around. The hard work certainly paid off, as she claimed a Silver at the NZ National Rowing Championship in the Women’s Premier Coxless Four with Cantebury Rowing Club, and a Bronze in the Women's Premier Eight.
Phoebe was named as a Reserve for the 2021 Women’s Tokyo Olympic Eight, being a crucial member of the sweep squad, helping them claim the Silver medal.
Phoebe was selected in the Elite Women’s Coxless Four in 2022. She competed at World Rowing Cup II, then went on to make history with the NZ crew winning the Town Challenge Cup at the 2022 Henley Royal Regatta. Following on from this success, the crew went on to compete at the World Rowing Cup III in Lucerne, Switzerland, where Phoebe and the crew claimed Bronze. Unfortunately, sickness struck some of the squad after impacting their preparation for the 2022 World Rowing Championships in Racice, Czech Republic. Phoebe and the crew came away with 8th overall in the Women’s Coxless Four.
Phoebe has now been named in the 2023 Elite Women’s Sweep Squad, coached by Matt Cameron. Phoebe joined forces with fellow crewmates Ella Cossill, Jackie Gowler and Davina Waddy in the Women's Coxless Four - claiming 6th in the A-Final at the 2023 World Rowing Cup III in Lucerne, Switzerland.
Phoebe has a twin sister - Grace Spoors, which she rowed with at Christchurch Girls High School, winning the U18 Pair together at the Aon Maadi Regatta in 2011. Grace went off to attend the University of Washington in 2012, in which Phoebe followed in her footsteps a year later. Phoebe also has an older sister - Lucy Spoors, who is also in the 2023 Women’s Elite Squad. They are one of the few sibling duos who have competed for Rowing New Zealand over the years.
Off the water, she enjoys having the responsibility of being Aunty Phoebe now, as her eldest sister Lucy gave birth to Baby Rupert at the end of 2022.