Aisha Chow Rowing

She will get her chance to find out on Saturday when rowing commences in Rio.

The journey to the Olympic Games has been a strange one for Chow who took up the sport quite late in life and began taking it seriously even later.

On a scholarship to the University of Miami to do a dual bachelor's degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Microbiology and Immunology, she began excelling academically and in sport.

A swimmer and karate student while in Trinidad, she opted to try her hand at rowing and quickly fell in love.

She later pursued her PhD in pharmacology and despite never seriously considering attempting to qualify for the Olympics, that is exactly what transpired.

After golden performances at several meets in 2015 following a hiatus from the sport, she entered the Latin American and Caribbean Olympic Qualifier Regatta in Chile.

A hindrance is just a challenge for Chow and despite less than ideal preparation time and up against 21 Latin American countries competing for just six spots, the Trinidadian picked up one of the coveted places with a new personal best time of seven minutes and 49 seconds. Chow finished seven seconds faster than her previous record and will now test her mettle against the best in the world. Few will bet against this scientist from Trinidad finding the formula for more success.