Cambridge graduate Henry Fieldman takes rowing bronze in Tokyo

Team GB has now won a medal in the Men’s Eight at every Games since 2008

Fieldman (pictured centre) coxed the men’s squad to medal success at this year's OlympicsPete Reed

by Liam Kline

Friday July 30 2021, 10:54am

Updated: 12:45pm

Team GB’s Henry Fieldman celebrated a podium finish at the Sea Forest Waterway earlier today (30/07), winning bronze in the Men’s Eight. Fieldman’s crew lost out on silver to a German squad that edged a time of 5:25.60, just 0.13 seconds faster than the British boat. Meanwhile, New Zealand cruised to the finish line with a time of 5:24.64, extending their gold medal count to three in the Tokyo rowing.

Fieldman’s time as a Cambridge student dates back to 2013, in which he coxed the Light Blues to a tough defeat in the annual Boat Race. Yet, international success was on the horizon, as he went on to win consecutive World Championship titles in the men’s coxed pair of 2015 and 2016. Since graduating, Fieldman has remained involved with the Cambridge University Boat Club (CUBC) in the capacity of a coxing coach.

Turning to Tokyo, a disappointing third-place result in last weekend’s heat meant that Team GB had to go through the repechage in order to qualify for the men’s Olympic final. After finishing second to New Zealand, Fieldman was then guaranteed an opportunity to compete for a medal.

Cambridge alumna Imogen Grant misses out on Tokyo rowing medal

Lining up for the final in lane five, the British crew started strongly and challenged the field up until the halfway stage of the 2,000m race, before the Kiwi boat asserted its dominance in a closing sprint for the finish. Fieldman’s squad went into the final stretch with a slim lead on the German boat, posting a +0.45-second split at the 1500m mark. However, a last push from Germany meant that silver just slipped away from the clutches of Team GB.

With the rowing in Tokyo coming to an end, the British cohort matched their lowest total of two medals that was set at the 1996 Atlanta Games, but a medal in the Men’s Eight ensured that Team GB has retained a spot on the Olympic podium in this event since 2008.

Elsewhere, Anna Kiesenhofer's gold in the Women's Road Race last week (25/07) means that Cambridge alumni have won a total of two medals at this year's Olympic Games.

In what proved to be a thrilling final, Varsity congratulates Henry and the rest of Team GB on their bronze medal in Tokyo.

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