Austria’s Lisa Farthofer breaks ten world records

World Rowing spoke to Austria’s Lisa Farthofer on her multiple world record adventure in the Antarctic.

Most people never come near world records, but for Lisa Farthofer, she has not just broken one but achieved ten in the name of rowing this year!

Farthofer trained from RV Seewalchen on Lake Attersee with the guidance of her first coach Margaret Sperrer and started her record-breaking habit early in 2005. During Austria’s Indoor Rowing Championship, Farthofer broke the U15 world record for the 1,000m. This achievement was scouted by Upper Austria’s national coach Kurt Bodenwinkler, and set Farthofer on the path of elite rowing, earning five World Championship medals at the junior and U23 level, including a gold in the double sculls. At the senior level, Farthofer notably finished a World Cup in Poznan with a fish as an unexpected passenger!

After years of rowing for Austria’s national team, Farthofer switched to compete in competitive sailing, following her father’s footsteps. However, rowing came back to greet her as she travelling around the world learning the waves and weather.

“About two years ago, my friend Olena Buryak cryptically called to say someone will be contacting me and to give him your ears”, says Farthofer. It was Fiann Paul, the captain of The Shackleton Mission and a renowned ocean rower. The pitch from Paul was both simple yet brutal; he was recruiting top athletes to row on board ‘Mrs Chippy’, from the Antarctic Peninsula, past Elephant Island to South Georgia, a 932-mile route in freezing temperatures. The expedition was inspired by the voyage made by Shackleton and his crew in their lifeboat between 1914-1917.

Farthofer initially hesitated and continued her sailing training. Then the pandemic struck and later her training partner got injured, delaying existing plans. This prompted Farthofer to reach back to Paul, who fortunately kept her seat free.

Farthofer then prepared as the only woman athlete alongside an international crew comprising Fiann Paul (Iceland), Mike Matson (USA), Jamie Douglas-Hamilton (UK), Stefan Ivanov (Bulgaria) and Brian Krauskopf (USA). “I preferred to be on the water to train. Training with wet hands and blisters helped emulate the conditions.  During the off-season, I would ergo outside in minus 10 Celsius weather. It shocked me how the cold impacted on performance and reminded me to be careful about how I dressed and what I ate”.

When World Rowing asked Farthofer how she had planned to cope, she responded stoically in the typical way of a top athlete “I just tried to be tougher”. Then, chuckling, she expanded, “you can be as fit as you want, but 80% is the other stuff, like the cold, or getting injured with the wrong shoes, or consuming food that causes bad digestion from eating under stress”. In the run-up to the voyage, she avoided dangerous activities to dodge injury.

While pulling across the Southern Ocean, Farthofer would row with up to five layers, and despite two pairs of gloves, her fingers were always cold. The tiny rowing boat also had no privacy or creature comforts, which came with practical challenges, “unlike the boys, I had to undress more to use the loo, and therefore was much more impacted by the cold”, says Farthofer. Yet her positivity still shone through, “at least it’s a sign of good digestion!”. Her determination caused crewmate Ivanov to dub her the “iron lady”.

Sadly, halfway through the expedition, Farthofer and the crew had to abandon their mission halfway due to serious illness within the team. Yet they still rowed unsupported for 407 nautical miles on the treacherous open waters in Antarctica between 11 to 17 January 2023, achieving eight world records for the team, plus two more for Farthofer for becoming the “first woman to row on the Southern Ocean”, and also the “first woman to row on Polar open waters”.

Asked about that decision, she says, “I am at peace. Initially, when your brain is on edge, it can feel frustrating, but you must think of the positives and negatives. There was a life risk. We are proud of our huge achievement”. Throughout she was grateful for her many supporters, including Detlev Seyb, who also provided some of the stunning photos. She also reflected on how incredible what people did in the 19^th century with boats made of wood in contrast to modern materials.

Farthofer added, “the experience also reminded me why I loved rowing so much. It gave back some of the passion I might have lost from elite rowing. Rowing will always be part of my life, and it showed me how beautiful the sport is. Rowing allows you to enjoy yourself fully, bring out the best in yourself, and push yourself 100%.”

World Rowing congratulates Lisa Farthofer and The Shackleton Mission crew for pushing the boundaries of human endeavour.