Since winning her Olympic Gold Katherine has been short-listed for the 2012 BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award, had a post box in Aberdeen painted gold in her honour, appeared on the Superstars television show and has been a guest on Question of Sport, Countdown and the Clare Balding Show on BT Sport. No, dont, urges Grainger. Dubbed the Steve Redgrave of women's rowing, in three previous Olympics - Sydney, Athens, Beijing - she had to settle for silver. Bryony Page on her way to a silver in gymnastics trampoline. Katherine had at least 1 relationship in the past. We saw him before the Games and he was talking to us about the opening ceremony. And more. Where did Steve Redgrave live as a child? The National Portrait Gallery is a favourite London destination. She now lives by the Thames, near to the GB Rowing Squad base. Back to 'Olympic Speakers'. "On the water, Steve Redgrave and Matthew . But after Beijing, every request to show the silver medal felt like the twist of a knife., Happy and glorious: The duo kicked off Great Britain's gold rush at the Games. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Aug 1, 2013 - Katherine Grainger with Sir Steve Redgrave. On 3 . In Beijing 2008 she won her third silver, again in the quadruple sculls. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Grainger has won eight medals at the World Championship between 1997 and 2011. She twice received the Edinburgh University Sports Union's Eva Bailey Cup for the university's most outstanding female athlete in 1995/96 and 1996/97[25] and was inducted to the University's Sports Hall of Fame on 29 May 2008. There was one quiet moment amid the mayhem of immediate victory. Books will be free of page markings. For Grainger and Watkins, in the middle of the cacophony, the ear-bleeding stereo was the sweetest of sounds. Shes like a normal person in society. It was a roar of deliverance from the purgatory of her nearly world. Two months out it's not the place you would want to be, so it was hard to see how to get through it. To round off a most exceptional 20 year rowing career, Katherine was named Dame Katherine Grainger in the 2017 New Years Honours List for services to rowing and charity. 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He has also won three Commonwealth Games gold medals and nine World Rowing Championships golds. Published: 00:33 GMT, 9 September 2012 | Updated: 00:33 GMT, 9 September 2012. She has friends galore, but the individualistic devotion to rowing success has its downsides. On the 11 August 2016, Katherine became the most decorated female Olympian of all time winning a silver medal, narrowly missing the gold after leading for 3/4 of the race. SIR Steve Redgrave has promised to introduce Scots rowing heroine Katherine Grainger to David Beckham after she sealed Olympic gold victory. But winning gold has made all the difference to her. Olympic. Olympic games. She has put life on hold. "Sport is a very tough, intense environment to work in. In December 2010 Katherine was excited to be awarded an honorary doctorate by The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen. It was our day, our time, our crowd.. Her own haul began with silver at Sydney, the same metal at Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008, then gold with Anna Watkins at London 2012. To become an Olympic champion is an extra-special and rare achievement and having had three medals in what, for me, were the wrong colour, I knew it would take something very special to win a gold. Rower Katherine Grainger wins a And who could ever forget the 'Mr Incredible' spirit of Sir Chris Hoy, whose redwood-like quadriceps propelled him to a last-lap triumph in the keirin, and to a sixth gold that surpassed the record of Sir Steve Redgrave. In May 2018, Redgrave assumed the High-Level Performance Director role for the Chinese Rowing Association to help China's rowing team's target of . Grainger was previously a board member of International Inspiration (2012-2017), a charity that promoted access to sport, play, and physical exercise for low and middle income families with children around the world. I would still have been a happy, normal-ish person if I hadnt won one but I wouldnt have felt fulfilled as an athlete. Shes got a little boy. "I thought Katherine made a mistake by taking two years out but she has proved me wrong," said Cracknell. The concept may be lost on the likes of Ye Shiwen who pitch up at their first Olympics and win gold medals at 16, but yesterday the Scot was the perfect advert for delayed gratification. I love this sport and the first time I got in a boat with Anna I knew we had the potential to do something special. At some point on Monday morning Katherine Grainger and Anna Watkins will meet up for a quiet coffee and a moment of reflection before they board Float 14 and enjoy their euphoric parade around the streets of London in a mass post-Olympic and Paralympic celebration. Eton School is an unlikely home for heavy industry but it has become the foundry for British medals at these Games. First Name Katherine. Rower. Foreword by Sir Steve Redgrave * Let's Start at the Very Beginning * The Wonder Years * Decisions, Discord and Donuts * Breakthrough at Sydney * All . My mum and dad werent sure if coming back was the right thing for me and they've been so supportive since I did, she said. I needed a break to be sure of my own mind.. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. "To come back at the back end of your 30s makes it hard to regain that kick you need in rowing. It took them 49 days, 19 hours and 8 minutes, coincidentally about the same time that it takes to travel anywhere in London. A union flag falling from the shoulders, a blue lycra bodysuit beneath and bare feet to set if off, but somehow the look worked because of the necklace. Id have been out of the country, away from everything, she said. She spent time working for the BBC as a co-presenter on the Rowing World Cup coverage, the BBC Inspire series and as a pundit during the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Putting her achievements into context is the job of others and another British rower, James Cracknell, who helped Redgrave win his fifth gold in the coxless fours in Sydney and finished first again in the same discipline in Athens, had a good handle on it. [We didnt know] if it would be possible to get that place at the Olympics and if so what boat that would be. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". Those sort of athletes that go over five Olympics - Fran Horton, Steve Redgrave - you have to be completely dedicated, diligent and on your game, because you have to look after your body and your chassis all the way, the Australian said. But it is difficult to keep all parts of your life going when you are devoted to something like this.. Their synchronicity was a thing of beauty and by the halfway mark the lead was half a length. Grainger's silver. No, it wasnt that kind of photo! Rower #7. Grainger threw her arms wide, looked up to the sky and let out a primal roar. he asked. They still play fiendishly cut-throat squash. For many who had not expected this pairing to even qualify for Rio, their result was outstanding and propelled Katherine into the history books. You see, Anna and I had never been beaten and in the heat we broke the world record, said Grainger. 10 When did Steven Redgrave retire from international rowing? The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. The cuddle with Sir Steve Redgrave was prolonged and sincere one great Olympic champion welcoming another deserving candidate to the club. That is what makes the fifth of her Olympic medals perhaps the most extraordinary of all. The 40-year-old from Glasgow became the first British woman to win five medals in separate Olympic Games - a feat only previously achieved by Steve Redgrave - as she finished a career . They led for the most of the race and were only pipped to gold in the last seconds, when the Polish pair slipped ahead to win by a mere 0.95 seconds. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. When did Steve Redgrave get diagnosed with diabetes? Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group. What Katherine has done is immense. - Oxford Brookes University", "Patrons | National Coastwatch Institution", "Committed to human and social development", "BBC SPORT | Olympics | Grainger to row on in gold hunt", "Scotland's women awarded Dame Katherine Grainger Quaich", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Katherine_Grainger&oldid=1132190610, This page was last edited on 7 January 2023, at 18:18. [10] She remarked, "Without planning it both my Olympic career and my PhD have met at the same time and the culmination for both is 2012 not by design."[11]. Katherine Grainger : the Autobiography Author Katherine Grainger Format Trade Paperback Language English Topic Water Sports, General, Sports, Olympics & Paralympics Publication Year 2017 Genre Biography & Autobiography, Sports & Recreation Number of Pages 368 Pages Dimensions Item Length 7.7in. RMHT57F2-Dame Katherine Grainger from Maidenhead is made a Dame Commander of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. The first winners of the trophy were Scotland.[33]. The wedding took place in Cornwall, where Helen is from. Do not sell or share my personal information. She returned to the quadruple sculls in Beijing 2008, when she won her third silver with Annabel Vernon, Debbie Flood and Frances Houghton, narrowly losing to China after taking the lead for some of the race. I cant tell you how happy that makes me.. Grainger, who won silver at the last three Games, produced a stunning row with Anna. Britain's Jazz Carlin secured her second silver of the Games in the women's 800m freestyle, as American Katie Ledecky surged to her fourth Rio gold. The most decorated female British athlete is rower Katherine Grainger, who won five medals during a 16-year Olympic career. We had a meeting that morning - all three of us had a meeting - and we all committed to the boat and committed to making it work, he said. She has won the Rowing World Cup in the quadruple sculls in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2010 and the double sculls in 2010, 2011 and 2012. [1][29], In August 2012, a postbox in Aberdeen was painted gold to celebrate her 2012 Olympic gold medal. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. I think days like this [made the difference] to be honest, she said. Mentally I would never have been able to let it go.. It was when this translated into a failure to achieve times which would be competitive in Rio that the two were on the brink of exclusion from the rowing squad. Graingers silver takes her past swimmer Rebecca Adlington's four Olympic medals, and level with tennis player Kitty Godfrey (nee McKane). Cracknell wasn't kidding. Olympic great returns to rowing in a bid to match Steve Redgrave's five successive medals Katherine Grainger is back in action is she prepares for Rio 2016 GB rower is targeting medal at. Four years later in Athens in 2004, she won silver again when she took part in the coxless pairs with Cath Bishop, losing to Georgeta Damian and Viorica Susanu of Romania. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. A part of me says Ive achieved what I set out to and, lets face it, I will be 40 by the time of the 2016 Games in Rio. 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