British Rower Wins Medals in Olympic Men’s and Women’s Events, Making History

At the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, British rower Henry Fieldman created Olympic history by being the first athlete to win medals in both men’s and women’s competition. Following his former achievement at the Tokyo Olympics, where he coxed the men’s team to a bronze medal in the same event, Fieldman accomplished this feat by coxing Great Britain’s Women’s Eight team to a bronze medal.

Regardless of the, Fieldman’s accomplishments as a coxswain demonstrate his talent, commitment, and adaptability. The only Olympic boats that require coxes at regattas are those that underwent a rule change implemented by World Rowing following the 2016 Rio Olympics, which made this accomplishment feasible.

Inspired by a fellow rower, Fieldman started his rowing career and went on to win his first Great Britain vest in the coxed four at the 2006 Coupe de la Jeunesse. He went from the under-23 team to the senior team and finally to the Olympics by advancing through the ranks steadily.

In 2023, Fieldman demonstrated his versatility by filling in to cox both the women’s and men’s eights at the European Championships in Bled. He didn’t get much practice with the men’s squad, but he still managed to lead them to a close win over Romania. He then came back to cox the women’s team, who finished behind the Romanian crew, to a silver medal.

Among Fieldman’s accomplishments is his Olympic debut in 2020, where he coxed the men’s eight from Great Britain to a bronze medal in Tokyo. He has won numerous medals in European championships and is a two-time world champion in the men’s coxed pair. He successfully guided the British men’s eight to a gold medal in 2023 and persuaded the women’s crew to place second.

“I hope that now that we’ve had two Olympic medals in the women’s eight that this could be the start of more women’s eights medals to come – stepping on to greater things,” he explained.