James Rudkin

James Rudkin
Personal information
Full nameJames Alexander Rudkin
NationalityBritish
Born (1994-07-07) 7 July 1994
Northampton, England
Height1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)
Sport
CountryGreat Britain
SportRowing
Event
Eight
ClubNewcastle University Boat Club
Medal record
Men's rowing
Representing  Great Britain
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place2024 ParisEight
Bronze medal – third place2020 TokyoEight
World Championships
Gold medal – first place2022 RačiceEight
Gold medal – first place2023 BelgradeEight
Bronze medal – third place2018 PlovdivEight
Bronze medal – third place2019 OttensheimEight
European Championships
Gold medal – first place2021 VareseEight
Gold medal – first place2022 OberschleißheimEight
Gold medal – first place2023 BledEight
Gold medal – first place2024 SzegedEight
Silver medal – second place2019 LucerneEight

James Alexander Rudkin (born 7 July 1994) is a British national representative rower.[1] He is an Olympic and two-time world champion.

Club and university rowing

Rudkin was raised in Northampton. He was introduced to rowing by his father and joined the Hollowell Scullers club.[1] He attended Stowe School on a sports scholarship[2] and then Newcastle University.[1]

His senior club rowing was from the Newcastle University Boat Club where he was men's captain in 2015.[1]

In 2022, he won the Grand Challenge Cup (the blue riband event at the Henley Royal Regatta) in the seven seat of a composite Leander/Oxford Brookes crew. In 2023 again in Leander Club colours, he was at seven in the Leander/Oxford Brookes eight for another Grand Challenge Cup victory.[3]

International representative career

Rudkin progressed through the underage levels representing for Great Britain. He competed in junior match racing against France in 2010 & 2011[1] and then at the 2012 Junior World Rowing Championships he was selected in the GB quad scull which finished in overall twelfth place.[4] He then raced in sweep oared crews at U23 World Rowing Championships in 2014, 2015 and 2016 winning a silver medal in the men's four at that 2016 regatta.[4]

Rudkin moved into the senior Great Britain squad in 2017 and held a seat in the GB men's eight consistently from 2017 to 2023. That crew finished in seventh place at the 2017 World Rowing Championships[4] and achieved constant improvement thereafter. Rudkin won a bronze medal at the 2018 World Rowing Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, in the eight with Alan Sinclair, Tom Ransley, Thomas George, Moe Sbihi, Oliver Wynne-Griffith, Matthew Tarrant, Will Satch and Henry Fieldman.[5] He won another bronze medal the following year at the 2019 World Rowing Championships in Ottensheim, Austria in the eight with George, Josh Bugajski, Sbihi, Jacob Dawson, Wynne-Griffith, Tarrant, Thomas Ford and Fieldman.[6] That crew had won silver at the 2019 European Rowing Championships.[7]

In 2021, he won a European gold medal in the eight in Varese, Italy.[8][9] At that year's delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics he was again in the seven seat of the Great Britain men's eight. They finished 3rd their heat but proceeded through a repechage to make the Olympic final. In the final they rowed level with the ultimate winner New Zealand at each mark but finished with a bronze medal being pipped for silver in the last 500m by the fast finishing Deutschland-Achter.[4]

Rudkin became a world champion in the seven seat of the British eight at the 2022 World Rowing Championships. He had earlier won gold that season at the 2022 European Rowing Championships.[10] In 2023 Rudkin won a second successive World Championship gold medal in the men's eight at the 2023 World Rowing Championships in Belgrade.[11]

He won a gold medal as part of the Great Britain eight at the 2024 Summer Olympics.[12]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Profile". British Rowing. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  2. ↑ "International Honours". Stowe. Stowe School. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
  3. ↑ "Leander, Oxford Brookes and Thames dominate at Henley Royal Regatta". British Rowing. 3 July 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 James Rudkin at World Rowing
  5. ↑ "2018 World Championship results" (PDF). World Rowing.
  6. ↑ "2019 Eight results" (PDF). World Rowing.
  7. ↑ "European Rowing Championships: Great Britain men's four win gold in Lucerne". BBC Sport. BBC. 2 June 2019. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  8. ↑ "Men's Double Sculls Final A (Final)". World Rowing. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  9. ↑ "Men's Eight Final FA (Final)". World Rowing. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  10. ↑ "European Championships Munich 2022: GB win four rowing gold medals". BBC. 13 August 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  11. ↑ "Catch-up: World Rowing Championships Finals: GB wins Gold in Men's Eight". BBC Sport. 9 September 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  12. ↑ "Britain's men win gold and women bronze in eights". BBC Sport. 3 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
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