Timing of foot injury thwarts Bertrand's Olympic prospects

Bertrand, 24, is in a moon boot, unable to get into a boat and the best-case scenario sees him only back rowing for a month before the Australian Olympic selection trials.

On top of that, his world title class, the men’s lightweight eight, is not an Olympic event and Australia doesn’t have a team qualified for one of his few other avenues into the London Olympics — the men’s double scull.

“The Olympics are not looking great. I broke my foot three weeks ago,” Bertrand said from bed yesterday.

“Initially it was a stress fracture, but I copped a knock, landed funny and that opened the break up and now it’s an acute fracture.

“I’m in a moon boot and the best-case scenario is that I get back into a boat a month before the trials.”

Bertrand said Australia’s lightweight fours crew also won at the world titles and he admitted breaking into that crew would be difficult.

He said Rowing Australia had not declared it would try and qualify a crew for the double lightweight sculls.

Asked to rate his form and ability in the lightweight eights crew, Bertrand was stunningly frank.

“I’m not in the top two in the eight. I would rate myself in the bottom four of the eight,” he said.

“I did not have a great season last year. Initially I was not selected in the eight, I was a reserve and only got in when a guy broke his leg a week after the trials. I had gastro at the trials and had a bad couple of weeks.”

However, the gun rower said he took heart from some of his results on a rowing machine which was used to gauge ability.

He said part of the trials included tests over distances of two kilometres, six kilometres, 500 metres, 100 metres and a 30-minute time trial on an ergometer.

Bertrand said across the board his results were not startling but his time over 2km — the Olympic distance — was second best.

“That gives me a bit of a positive guide,” he said.

“I’m 24 now. Judging when rowers peak is not an exact science, but I would say in our late 20s, particularly for lightweight rowers.

“I’m in it for the long run. I’ve still got years left. I’ve seen things improve slowly over the last couple of years. You can’t put it down to anything except experience and years of rowing.”

Bertrand is living in Melbourne and operating a personal fitness business while also trying to keep up his own training by swimming, water running and upper body strength work.

“Realistically, London is an outside chance, but I’m still training,” he said.

“The world titles was a great title. It was pretty special winning a gold medal. It’s something that can never be taken away from you and that’s pretty cool.

“It’s something I’ll have forever."