Finding Her Coxing Voice – Akansha Kamineni

In response to the growing demand for funds in the rowing community, NK is proud to continue providing tangible support with the NK Grant Program. Our quarterly grants offer frequent and regular opportunities for athletes and programs. NK remains committed to advancing the sports we serve, and we believe this will help empower more individuals and organizations to achieve their goals.

In 2025, Akansha Kamineni - 1V cox at the University of Minnesota and Men's Rowing President - won one of our grants. As an accomplished coxswain in her own right, she was the perfect fit for our next installment of 'How I Found My Coxing Voice.'

How did you first get into coxing?

I graduated from high school in 2021—the same year the Olympics were finally held after being postponed due to COVID. Like many, I felt inspired watching incredible athletes compete on the world stage and wanted to try something new. When I saw the men's eights heats on TV, rowing immediately caught my attention. At first, I thought about becoming a rower and contacted my college's team for more information. However, after learning more about the sport, I realized my build was better suited for coxing, so I decided to attend the recruitment event for the Men's Crew Team.

I still remember our first practice on the water. We were in the barge—a flat, stable boat perfect for novices—and I sat in the back, listening to our coach. The experience of being out on the water, especially in such a beautiful spot along our stretch of the Mississippi, was incredible. At first, I fell in love with the scenery, but as I gained confidence in the boat and entered my first spring 2k season, I fell in love with coxing itself. There's something special about being part of a crew—one piece of a larger machine—winning and losing together. It's an experience unlike any other.

What kept you involved in the very beginning, and how has that evolved over the years?

I touched on this a little already, but in the beginning, what kept me involved was simply being out on the water. I grew up playing soccer, but I had never played a sport like rowing. There was something mesmerizing about the click of a perfect finish and the feeling of gliding effortlessly across the river on a flat day.

Over time, my love for the sport deepened. When I was just starting, things like steering and racing felt daunting—every adjustment required full concentration. But now, the steering feels as natural as breathing, and piece days are my favorite days of the week. There's nothing like being in a high-intensity race, making the right calls in the last crucial moments to help your boat gain that one extra seat needed to win.

Beyond the racing itself, the camaraderie within the team has become just as important to me. Between long hours at practice and van rides that stretch 17 hours to regattas and training trips, my teammates have become some of my closest friends.

What was your first club like and how important were they to your growth?

The Men's Crew Team at the University of Minnesota was my very first rowing experience, so I don't have much to compare it to—but I know that starting in college taught me a lot about autonomy. Since I didn't have any junior experience, it felt like being thrown into the deep end immediately. Many of my teammates had also started rowing in college, so we were learning together, but as a coxswain, you don't have the luxury of easing into things. When you're responsible for eight college-age rowers, taking control isn't optional—it's essential.

How would you define your coxing style?

I've been told my coxing style is "quiet intensity," and I'd say that's exactly what I aim for. One of the most important things to me is getting to know the guys in my boat, which becomes easier in the spring when we have set lineups. I like to develop specific calls for each rower—something that will fire them up individually—along with calls that will ignite the entire boat. I mentally rehearse these calls while watching or recapping a race and test them in practice to see what resonates.

I'm also a huge fan of British coxswains and take a lot of inspiration from them. I love listening to the Oxford Brookes and Leander coxswain recordings from Henley Royal Regatta—there's something about their precision and command that I try to bring into my own style.

In your opinion, what is the most important attribute a successful coxswain must imbue?

There are so many traits that make a great coxswain, and I admire different qualities in both my teammates and coxswains from other crews. But if I had to choose the most important attribute, I'd say resiliency— in every sense.

Whether at a regatta or in practice, you will have a bad piece at some point. But as the coxswain, you're the voice of the boat, and how you respond in that moment is crucial. Your tone can either lift your crew or drag them down. You must make them believe they can bounce back—that the next piece is theirs—without letting frustration or desperation creep into your voice. I've received feedback on this before, and I actively work on it every day in the boat.

Beyond that, crazy situations happen all the time. In just four years of coxing, I've already collected dozens of stories about unexpected, high-pressure moments. Staying calm, leading your boat through the necessary steps, and not letting those moments shake your future performances are all part of being resilient. A coxswain sets the tone—literally and figuratively—and that ability to stay composed under pressure makes all the difference.

What has been your favorite coxing memory?

I have so many favourite coxing memories, but two stand out.

The first is winning my first shirt. Every April, part of our team has the incredible opportunity to travel to D.C. for a regatta hosted by George Washington, where we race duals against some amazing crews. Last year, as a junior, I got to attend for the first time with my boat. Our first of three duals was against Rutgers—a crew that had beaten us the previous year and one we hadn't faced all season. The conditions were brutal. The Potomac was covered in whitecaps, giant waves, and even floating logs. It was so bad that the rest of the regatta got canceled—but not before we got up to the line with Rutgers. When the horn blew, we exploded off the start, flying ahead in our 30-stroke sequence and pulling away throughout the 2k. That race solidified in our heads just how fast we were and how well we worked together. Winning that shirt was just the cherry on top.

Another favorite memory is the mixed boat races we do at the end of the fall season with the novices before we de-rig and turn the boat bay into an erg bay for winter training. I've loved them every year, but this past fall was especially fun. We raced 2x2k and ended in a three-way tie, so to break it, the coxswains had to hop on the ergs for a 100-meter dash. I didn't win (so my boat didn't get the coveted dragon trophy), but getting out there with the novices was an absolute blast.

What was the biggest learning curve during your coxing journey and how did you tackle it?

As a coxswain, I can be a bit of a control freak. I like getting things right on the first try, so it took me a long time to be okay with making mistakes. That was a huge learning curve for me, but I became a much better coxswain once I got past it.

Of course, I still make mistakes—like putting boats on the trailer the wrong way when I'm on autopilot until someone calls me out—but I've learned to laugh it off, trust in my abilities, and take feedback as a learning opportunity rather than criticism. At the end of the day, the best way to improve is to be willing to try, fail, and keep going.

What is the one bit of advice you'd give to a new cox trying to find his or her voice?

Get out of your comfort zone and get out of your head! This is something I struggled with, and I think it's a common challenge for a lot of new coxswains. Off the water, I'm a pretty calm person, and I try to stay that way on the water, but in races, you experience so many emotions—anger, frustration, excitement—and finding a way to channel those feelings is really important. Our coach always emphasizes the power of using your emotions, which I try to do, even if it's in a slightly quieter way.

It's also essential to remember that your coxing style doesn't have to sound exactly like someone else's. Your style is what makes you unique, and the key is finding a way to be authentic that also resonates with your rowers. At the end of the day, what matters most is developing a style that feels right to you and works well with your crew.

How did you go about winning the NK grant, and what did the process look like?

I first heard about the NK grant from another coxswain who joined our team and had experience rowing in high school and middle school. I applied for the program grant last year, but unfortunately, we didn't receive anything. When the applications opened again this year and we were eligible, I decided to try again.

When writing the application answers, I focused on authenticity and emphasized how useful these products could be for our team. Our program has undergone significant changes in the past few years due to COVID and shifts in the coaching staff, but we're now on the verge of something historic. We don't have the same level of support as some of the other ACRA programs, so it's harder for us to get the equipment we need to take us from good to great.

When we won, the NK team was incredibly supportive, helping us get everything we needed for the year. It made a huge difference in our ability to succeed, and I'm grateful for the opportunity.

How crucial is high-quality equipment (like NK) to set you up for success?

As I mentioned earlier, our team is evolving. We have a much larger squad now than when I was a freshman, so we're often running low on equipment—whether boats, NK gear, or even enough coxswains to go around. Despite being scrappy, we can still put up times that rival other top ACRA programs.

However, with the number of boats going out daily, we often didn't have enough working/reliable Coxboxes, let alone Coxboxes with GPS, which are crucial tools for racing. We're working to prioritize having access to newer, high-quality equipment for our top boats and ensuring there's enough quality gear for our novice boats. This would help level the playing field and set us up for success alongside the other top teams.