By Greg Levinsky — Correspondent
For Concordian Margaret Hedeman, the Olympic rings helped bring her whole family into a thrilling inner circle.
The elite rower scored her family tickets to The USA House at the Paris Olympics. That meant exclusive access for her parents, Rick and Rena, and sisters, Catlin and Lizzie, to mingle with current and former medalists at the Palais Brongniart.
After a few hours at the house, the Concord family headed to the metro and experienced the chance meeting of a lifetime: There stood Billie Jean King and her wife, Ilana Kloss.
They spoke briefly about what they were doing at the Games, and after informing King that Margaret represented the U.S. in rowing, the Battle of the Sexes champion sent Margaret well-wishes through her family.
“I considered it quite the honor to have met her,” Rick said.
Cause for celebration
Margaret Hedeman’s participation in her first Olympics this summer was the crown jewel of a decade of training, and the Games brought her family together in a unique and unforgettable way.
“It’s not just a fact that she accomplished something so big and exciting by making the U.S. Olympic team,” Rena said, “but she really gave us an excuse to be together and to celebrate for a week in Paris.”
The 2019 Concord-Carlisle High School graduate said her Women’s Eight boat’s fifth-place finish was a bit disappointing, but she describes her Olympic experience as overwhelmingly positive.
“Having my whole extended family there was so incredible; just seeing how much people cared about it was really fun,” said Hedeman, 24.
“My parents would get emails and forward them on to me, and that was just really special. … Rowing can feel kind of like I’m on the outside a little bit sometimes because it’s not basketball or football, but having people pay attention to it is really awesome and just makes me very excited for the sport,” she said.
‘Team Hedeman’ out in force
Fifteen family members — including aunts, uncles and cousins — were all decked out in custom T-shirts printed with the Olympic logo and “Team Hedeman.” Many of Hedeman’s friends and teammates from Yale University, where Hedeman earned first-team All-America honors as a senior during the 2022-23 school year, also traveled to the Games.
Rowing events took place about a half-hour outside Paris at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium. The family saw Margaret briefly after the first heat, but they couldn’t spend a lot of time together during the Games themselves, so they spent plenty of time watching and exploring the scene writ large, highlighted by a view of the Olympic venues from atop the Eiffel Tower.
After the last race, Hedeman joined her ardent supporters for a much longer, meaningful family dinner.
“The feeling there was just serious, very real pride, excitement, and joy,” said Rena, who also rowed at Yale. “It was so much more than just qualifying; it was just an accomplishment in so many senses of the word.”
Hedeman began rowing a decade ago at Community Rowing Incorporated in Brighton. Rowing, Rick said, is about the long-term commitment and who you become as part of it.
“It’s a lifetime process, and I don’t think she’s become different from who she was,” he said, “but for her, I think she likes to be a part of something that’s bigger than herself, and it allows her to maximize her potential.”
Viral muffin moment
After a team training camp in Italy in early July, Hedeman flew to Paris on July 22. She lived in the main Olympic Village until the August 11 closing ceremonies.
Hedeman and her teammates had an entire week to “bop around the village,” sightsee in Paris, and take in other Olympic events.
She sampled the village bakery’s chocolate muffin, which went viral after Norwegian swimmer Henrik Christiansen posted several videos that gave it a 11/10 rating. (Hedeman herself thought the muffin was just fine, but she did sneak one out for a college friend.)
Her friend took an internet-breaking video of a swimmer sleeping on the ground. She became friends with many members of the U.S. track team, including two-time gold medalist Rai Benjamin, and watched men’s rugby alongside women’s standout Ilona Maher.
“It’s so nice to watch other sports when you can ask athletes what’s happening. Like, I didn’t watch much rugby, but I know way more because I could ask the athletes on women’s rugby about it,” Hedeman said. “The Olympics really brought the best out of Paris. The volunteers were so excited that it made everywhere you went in the city amazing.”
Home again (briefly)
Nearly a month after returning home, Hedeman still gets recognized. On a recent run, she received some congratulations from her childhood neighbors.
Hedeman will soon move to London to work and train before starting Bryn Mawr College’s yearlong post-bac, pre-med program next May. She hopes to compete in the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles — perhaps with Lizzie, a Brown University sophomore, and members of the U.S. Under 19 National Team alongside.
“I say all the time, ‘Don’t be injured so that you can row with me in a pair in 2028,’” Hedeman said. “I think she thinks I’m joking, but I’m not, actually. I’m not pressuring her in any way … but I’d be very, very happy to be on the same team as her.”
