Thomas Ford (rower)

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Thomas Ford
Personal information
NationalityBritish
Born (1992-10-03) 3 October 1992 (age 31)
Holmes Chapel, England
Height1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Sport
CountryGreat Britain
SportRowing
Event(s)Coxless four, Eight
ClubLeander Club
Medal record
Men's rowing
Representing  Great Britain
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2020 Tokyo Eight
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2022 Račice Eight
Gold medal – first place 2023 Belgrade Eight
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Plovdiv Coxless four
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Ottensheim Eight
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2021 Varese Eight
Gold medal – first place 2022 Munich Eight
Gold medal – first place 2023 Bled Eight
Silver medal – second place 2018 Glasgow Coxless four
Silver medal – second place 2019 Lucerne Eight

Thomas Ford (born 3 October 1992) is a British national representative rower.[1] He is a two-time world champion and an Olympic bronze medallist.

Club and varsity rowing[edit]

Ford was rowing for the Newcastle University Boat Club when he first represented for GB at the U23 level. Following graduation he joined the Leander Club.[1] At the 2016 Henley Royal Regatta in a Leander crew he rowed to victory in the Ladies' Challenge Plate for men's intermediate eights.[1]

In 2022, he won the Grand Challenge Cup (the blue riband event at the Henley Royal Regatta) stroking a composite Leander/Oxford Brookes crew. In 2023 again in Leander Club colours he stroked a Leander/Oxford Brookes eight to another Grand Challenge Cup victory.[2]

International representative career[edit]

Ford made his representative debut for Great Britain in the men's U23 eight which raced at the 2013 U23 World Rowing Championships in Ottensheim.[3] That crew finished overall sixth. In 2014 he again made selection in the GB eight for the U23 World Championships.[3]

In 2017 Ford moved into the Great Britain men's senior squad and raced in the eight at World Rowing Cups I & III and at that year's European Championships. At the 2017 World Rowing Championships he raced a coxed pair with Timothy Clarke and steered by Harry Brightmore to an overall fourth placing.[3]

With Jacob Dawson, Adam Neill and James Johnston, Ford held a seat in the Great Britain coxless four in the 2018 international season and won a bronze medal at the 2018 World Rowing Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria,[4] Ford won a silver medal in the British eight at the 2019 European Rowing Championships[5] and then won bronze at the 2019 World Rowing Championships in Ottensheim, Austria in the eight with Thomas George, James Rudkin, Josh Bugajski, Moe Sbihi, Jacob Dawson, Oliver Wynne-Griffith, Matthew Tarrant and Henry Fieldman.[6]

In 2021, he won a European gold medal in the eight in Varese, Italy.[7] [8] At that year's delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics Ford stroked 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 German crew.[3]

Ford became a world champion stroking the British eight to victory at the 2022 World Rowing Championships. He had earlier that season won gold at the 2022 European Rowing Championships.[9] In 2023 he won a second successive World Championship gold medal again as the strokeman in the men's eight at the 2023 World Rowing Championships in Belgrade.[10]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Profile". British Rowing. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  2. ^ "Leander, Oxford Brookes and Thames dominate at Henley Royal Regatta". British Rowing. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d Tom Ford at World Rowing
  4. ^ "2018 World Championship results" (PDF). World Rowing.
  5. ^ "European Rowing Championships: Great Britain men's four win gold in Lucerne". BBC Sport. BBC. 2 June 2019. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  6. ^ "2019 Eight results" (PDF). World Rowing.
  7. ^ "Men's Double Sculls Final A (Final)". World Rowing. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  8. ^ "Men's Eight Final FA (Final)". World Rowing. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  9. ^ "European Championships Munich 2022: GB win four rowing gold medals". BBC. 13 August 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2022.
  10. ^ "Catch-up: World Rowing Championships Finals: GB wins Gold in Men's Eight". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 September 2023.

External links[edit]