SINGAPORE – Sitting in her rowing boat in the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saiyidah Aisyah stilled herself as she took in the scenery and calm waters around her.

It was February 2023, over six years since her Olympic debut in the same waters, but only in that moment did she truly appreciate the beauty of her surroundings.

At Rio 2016, she was in the thick of the action in the women’s single sculls and Aisyah, the first Singaporean rower to compete in the Olympics, was too busy to savour the moment.

Back at the scene of her career milestone – she was there for a work trip – Aisyah, who took an indefinite break from competition in end-2017, realised that she had “unfinished business” at the Olympics.

That, along with a host of other factors, has prompted her to launch a comeback at the age of 35 as she makes a bid for the Paris Games in July.

On social media, the rower has been hinting at a return for weeks. Speaking to The Straits Times via zoom from Taree in New South Wales, Australia – where she is training – Aisyah flashed her pearly whites when asked about it.

She said: “During the Olympic Games, there was just a lot of pressure. When I went back to Rio for work, I was thinking wow, Rio is beautiful. I should have been in the moment more.

“Maybe it was one of the reasons that made me feel like I had some things that I need to settle, some unfinished business.”

At the 2013 SEA Games, Aisyah became the face of Singapore rowing when she won the women’s 2,000m lightweight single sculls – it was the Republic’s first Games gold since 1997.

Her road to Rio also inspired many Singaporeans, as she used up most of her savings and had to crowdfund to raise money for her training and living expenses in Sydney for her Olympic dream.

Now, almost eight years after her Rio debut, Aisyah finds herself back at the start.

It was in early 2023 that she first thought about a comeback. She had competed in several marathons and felt “really fit” after going back to the gym.

Her full-time job with rowing machine company Hydrow, where she is a trainer, also meant she was doing the sport regularly.

But it was not until a meeting in October 2023 in Paris with fellow Olympians that she gained confidence to take the plunge.

There for an Olympics Broadcast Training Programme, which offers hands-on experience and insight into how the Games are broadcast, she met Polish 400m hurdler Marek Plawgo, an Olympic kayaker from South Africa, a Serbian basketball player and a winter Olympian from Australia.

She said: “I was telling them that I was in my mid-30s and that maybe it’s time for me to move on...

“But they’re all in their 40s and 50s and they told me ‘no, you’re still young and you should try it at least one more time. If you don’t, you will regret it forever’. That was when I started to feel like if I don’t give this a try, I will regret it. I don’t want to live a life with a feeling of ‘what if’.”

Her performance in the boat added belief. Last October, she competed in the masters category of the Head Of The Charles regatta in the United States and finished sixth out of 41 rowers. She was just behind Trinidad and Tobago’s Felice Aisha Chow, who competed at the Tokyo Games in 2021.

But her romance with the City of Love will be fraught with challenges. To get to Paris, Aisyah will first have to compete in the national time trials in February alongside former teammate Joan Poh – who competed in Tokyo – to be selected.

If she makes the cut, she will then need to get the nod for the April 19-21 Asian & Oceania Continental Qualification Regatta in Chungju, South Korea, where she has to finish among the top five to earn her Olympic ticket.

Aisyah said that she has not been tracking Poh’s progress, adding: “I don’t know what my chances are... The competition for a spot gives us an edge and I think that’s what makes it exciting.”

Responding to queries, a Singapore Rowing spokesman said: “Singapore Rowing is delighted that our first Olympian and SEA Games champion Saiyidah Aisyah has decided to return to competitive rowing. Aisyah will have to participate in national time trials... The same goes for all other rowers who wish to represent Singapore.”

Aisyah, who married American Ross Zuckerman in 2019, moved from Boston to Sydney in end-December to train. Her husband has been a strong pillar of support, she said.

And it is Zuckerman, as well as her family back home, that she will lean on during a difficult and uncertain campaign.

“I had this fear that people might judge me, and even a fear of failure,” she said. But having decided to “just take that step”, Aisyah added: “Feel the fear, but do it anyway.”