Paralympic Champion Gregg Stevenson retires
After a stand-out, unbeaten Paris cycle, which culminated in him and his partner Lauren Rowles being crowned Paralympic Champions and World Rowing Para Crew of the Year 2024, Gregg Stevenson is leaving the GB Rowing Team
Gregg became interested in rowing after trying out for the Invictus Games in 2018, following a traumatic injury during his time as a Royal Engineer Commando in Afghanistan 2009, which led to a bilateral lower limb amputation. In 2019, he spent some time at Caversham, but an injury curtailed his Tokyo 2020 aspirations. He returned in 2023 after spending time with the development squad and coaches at Agecroft RC. With renewed energy and overall development, he and Lauren Rowles developed their partnership in the PR2 Mixed Double sculls (PR2 Mix2x), becoming two-time European Champions, World Champions and Paralympic Champions, continually lowering the world’s best time as they went!
Photo: Benedict Tufnell.
Gregg said: “I am incredibly grateful for the support from all the coaches involved in my development and journey to the Paris Paralympic Games. I have learned a lot about myself and feel I have grown as a person since my involvement.
“It has been hard to imagine life without the goal of competing in the summer, even though my time within the team has been particularly short. However, I eagerly look forward to spending more time with my family and embarking on other exciting challenges. I will be forever grateful to everyone at GB Rowing and I hope to stay connected or offer my support in the future.”
Nick Baker, Paralympic Head Coach said: “Gregg is one of those athletes you rarely come across in elite sport. Humble, talented, hardworking and willing to accept and respond to challenging feedback to improve his own and his team performance. Gregg brought an unshakable positivity to a team that is always under pressure and has an expectation to perform wherever it goes. Gregg will be missed dearly by all of our team, however it’s great to know that he will be sharing his energy in the veteran community and he’ll have a huge impact on those who have seen conflict. Good luck Gregg, it was an honour to work with you.”
Before rowing, Gregg worked as a mental health practitioner for an NHS veteran-specific service called ‘Op Courage’, where he played a vital role in developing and improving coping strategies, increasing patient engagement and familiarity. He has a great passion for improving mental health provision and breaking down barriers to healthcare. He’s currently serving as the Armed Forces Lived Experience Lead for Op Courage North. He completed his MSc in Psychology with distinction, and is now studying for a PhD at Manchester Metropolitan University.
