And all going to plan, Brodie will perform the same role at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 in a bid to help the men's eight crew secure a gold medal.

Taking charge of a men's crew is nothing new for the NSW Institute of Sport athlete, who says she has spent more of her near 15-year rowing career on a male boat than alongside female rowers.

Rowing Australia have allowed women to cox in male events for the past 20 years but the sport's international body, FISA, only last year decreed the role of coxswain to be gender neutral.

Physical size and strength does not matter when coxing a boat. The only difference between the male and female coxswain had been the weight limit - women had to be a minimum of 50kg while men could be 55kg.

"It's exciting to be the first female. It's really nice to have the recognition but also it shows the rest of the rowing community that females can cox male crews and males can cox female crews," Brodie said.

"That's the interesting thing about the role of the coxswain because it's not a physical one in the boat, there's no oar in our hands, we're not adding speed through power.

"It's really about what an individual can bring to the role and what an individual's ability is, and an individual's performance. It's takes gender out of it. I really like that aspect."

Brodie, 24, started coxing in school before joining the Sydney Rowing Club, where she progressed through the ranks to become the senior coxswain.

Competition has taken her to America and Europe and after missing out twice before she has finally earned Australian selection.

The most recent selection process was just the second since FISA adjusted their coxswain gender rules.

A coxswain (pronounced kok-sen) sits in the stern of the boat facing in the direction of movement, opposed to the vessel's crew.

Their chief role is to make sure the boat is steering in a straight line, but they also act as a coach, a mentor and a motivator while on the water and are responsible for the crew's tactics.

"I played the cello at school and I was in the orchestra ... it's is definitely like trying to be the conductor," Brodie said.

"I think of coxswains as the ultimate multi-taskers, while we're constantly steering we're also feeling the rhythm of the boat, feeling the timing and we have to have a lot of technical knowledge.

"If something's not right I've got to be able to identify that and know in what way to respond to get the crew back together or to get the most out of them.

"You have to find out what's going to tap into the people in the boat and the brains in the boat and get the most out of them.

"You've got to be able to think on your feet and know what tools the crew has to pull out of the bag to get a response."

The second of three rowing World Cup meets begins in Linz-Ottensheim on Friday while the final event is at Lucerne in Switzerland next month.

Many oars are yet to pass through the water before 2020 Olympic selection but Brodie hopes World Cup success will steer her in the right direction.

"That's a big dream of mine," Brodie said.

"At the moment I've just made my first team so I'm just focusing on what's in front of me and that's learning as much as I can, taking on the experience of representing Australia at the upcoming World Cup and doing as well as I can to keep the seat."