As the 2024 Paris Olympics enters its first full week, Rausser College of Natural Resources joins the greater UC Berkeley community in cheering on Cal athletes at the Games. This year, five current or former students of Rausser College are competing in the Summer Games.
Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics
Stephanie Au
Women’s Swimming
Stephanie Au is a five-time Olympian who debuted at the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing, where she was the youngest team member representing Hong Kong. Au has competed in freestyle, backstroke, and relay events throughout her Olympic career. She was Hong Kong’s flag bearer during the 2016 Summer Games in Rio opening ceremony.
Au graduated from the College in 2014 with a BS in environmental economics and policy. She competed in backstroke and freestyle events as a part of Cal Women's Swimming & Diving team and was a member of the 2011 and 2012 NCAA champion teams. Au was named an honorable mention All-American both 2011 and 2012.
Cal Athletics photo by Zach Franzen
Angus Dawson
Men's Rowing
Angus Dawson makes his second Olympics appearance this year after debuting as part of Australia’s men's eight rowing team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Since his debut, Dawson has won gold for Australia in the men's eight at the 2023 World Rowing Cup III in Lucerne, Switzerland. He also helped Australia win the bronze medal in the men's eight at the 2022 U23 World Championships in Varese, Italy.
Dawson is a current environmental economics and policy student in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics. He was a member of Cal’s varsity eight that won back-to-back Intercollegiate Rowing Association national championships in 2022 and 2023 and was named a First-Team All-American in 2022 and 2023 by the Intercollegiate Rowing Coaches Association. Read more about Dawson on the Cal Athletics website
Gai at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games. Photo by Sandro Halank
Jennie Gai
Badminton
Jennie Gai made her Olympic debut this year, representing the United States in mixed doubles badminton. She began playing badminton at seven after watching her father, Henry, play for fun. In 2018 Gai became the first and only American badminton player since 2010 to qualify for the Youth Olympic Games. She finished the tournament as a quarter-finalist in the girls' singles and won the gold medal in the team event with Team Alpha.
Gai completed her BS in Nutritional Sciences in December 2022, graduating a semester early to dedicate time to her training. Gai has competed in mixed doubles matches with Vinson Chiu, BA ’22 Data Science for the past few years. Gai most recently won silver medals at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile, and at the 2024 Pan American Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala. Read more about Gai at the Team USA website.
Kara Kohler
Women’s Rowing
Rower Kara Kohler makes her third Olympic appearance this year, representing the United States in the women's single sculls. She made her Olympic debut at the 2012 Summer Games in London, where she was part of the women's quadruple sculls crew that earned the bronze medal. After competing in the women’s single sculls at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Kohler continued to race internationally—taking home a bronze medal in the women's single sculls at the 2023 World Rowing Cup II.
Kohler graduated from the College in 2014 with a BS in environmental economics and policy. She swam competitively in high school and joined the Golden Bears rowing team as a walk-on in 2010. She found immediate success at Cal, earning the Pac-10 Newcomer of the Year Award that same season before leading the Bears' varsity eight to an NCAA Championship in 2013. She was named an All-American each of her four years at Cal. Read more about Kohler’s journey on the Team USA website.
Camryn Rogers
Track and Field
Camryn Rogers is a two-time Olympian and world-champion hammer thrower representing Canada at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She made history during her debut at the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo, where she placed fifth and became the first Canadian woman ever to reach the hammer final. Since then, Rogers took gold in the women's hammer throw at the 2023 World Athletics Championships—the second Canadian woman to do so—and set the 5th all-time and standing Canadian records in the event.
Rogers graduated from UC Berkeley in 2022 with undergraduate degrees in Society and Environment and Political Economy. While at Cal, she won three straight NCAA women’s hammer titles (2019, 2021-22) and was the first Cal woman to win gold in the event. Rogers holds the top-10 hammer throws in collegiate history, including the record of 77.67m set in June 2022. Read more about Rogers’ career in Sports Illustrated, California magazine, and the Team Canada website.