Colne rower Gregg Stevenson wins World Championship gold medal on his birthday in Belgrade

The Colne rower, who turned 39 on Saturday, teamed up with Lauren Rowles to earn victory in a thrilling PR2 mixed double sculls final which saw the British pair put under serious pressure by China’s Liu Shuang and Jiang Jijian.

Stevenson and Rowles held firm to add the world title to the European crown secured earlier this year and leave the birthday boy beaming.

“I thought it was gone for a second, I’m still a novice so I’ve not been in such a tight race,” he said.

“I’ve had nerves but that was something else, my adrenaline was pumping and I really had to rely on Lauren, which just shows the partnership we have.

“I just heard the calls and thought ‘you’re going to have to grit your teeth get moving, old boy’.

“But we stuck together and we did it, which is what we do. We’re quite famed at Caversham for putting up with tough conditions and working hard, and it paid off today.”

The pair’s performances in Serbia have earned Great Britain a Paralympic quota place in their class, with Rowles looking to defend her title following gold in Tokyo.

She was delighted to return to the top of the World Championship podium for the first time since 2019 having missed last year’s competition and paid plenty of credit to her new partner in the boat.

“Gregg is the most phenomenal man. He has been through hell and back and turns up every day with a smile on his face.

“He is one of the most incredible people I’ve met. He has done this for his wife, Mel, and his two boys, on his birthday – they, and everybody who helps us, deserve this.

“The Chinese pair started pushing us in the middle but we thought ‘this is our day, this is our gold medal’. We have trained all season for this.”

British Rowing is the governing body for the sport and is responsible for the development of rowing in England and the training and selection of rowers to represent Great Britain. The GB Rowing Team is supported by the National Lottery Sports Fund. To find out more visit https://www.britishrowing.org/