Team GB’s female rowers took the Olympic gold medal at the end of a hugely dramatic quad sculls final on Wednesday morning. Lauren Henry, Hannah Scott, Lola Anderson and Georgie Brayshaw left it late to snatch top spot from the Netherlands right on the line.
The British quartet looked set for silver with just 250 metres to go but they dug deep to launch a successful sprint to the finish line. It was initially called as a photo finish but it quickly became apparent that Britain’s rowers had pipped their Dutch rivals at the very last second.
Moe Sbihi, a former Olympic champion rower who was providing commentary for the BBC, was left delighted with the late show from Henry, Scott, Anderson and Brayshaw as they claimed Team GB’s sixth gold medal of the Games.
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He said: “Amazing scenes! That’s why you go to the last stroke. They looked dead and done with 250 metres to go but they sprinted, they believed in themselves and their race plan and didn’t give up. Phenomenal!”
The result means Team GB have already improved on their gold medal tally in rowing from the previous Olympics, having come away from Tokyo with one silver and one bronze.
Speaking to the BBC after exiting the water, a tearful Anderson said: “It just feels like it has been ages working towards this. We are very process driven and always looking to what comes next.
“When you get to the end of a cycle like this, it doesn’t get bigger and it’s quite overwhelming but we are very grateful. I know my dad would be so, so proud. I’m thinking a lot about him right now and it’s lovely.”
Reflecting on the dramatic sprint finish, Scott added: “We were so process driven today. I’ve just been trying to play it really cool. We kept it so cool at the end. We knew we had the confidence after doing so many hard miles in training.”
It came just minutes after Alex Yee secured a dramatic victory in the men’s triathlon, which was delayed by 24 hours due to the poor water quality in the River Seine. He fought hard to close a 15-second gap on Hayden Wilde of New Zealand to improve on the silver he won in Tokyo three years ago.
