Harrogate's Georgie Brayshaw on 'incredible' experience helping Team Great Britain to sixth Olympic gold medal

The former St John Fisher Catholic High School pupil was part of the women’s quadruple sculls crew that edged out the Netherlands at the very last moment of Wednesday morning’s final.

Trailing their European rivals throughout and still half-a-length behind with only 200 metres to go, Team GB delivered when it mattered, nosing in front with the final stroke of the race just as the boats crossed the finish line.

That historic victory was secured in a time of 6 minutes 16.31 seconds, just 0.015 seconds ahead of the Dutch (6:16:46).

In doing so alongside Hannah Scott, Lola Anderson and Lauren Henry, 30-year-old Brayshaw became part of the first British team ever to win Olympic gold in the women’s quadruple sculls squad.

“It’s just incredible, I have no words,” Brayshaw said.

“It just means so much. I don’t really think too much about what happened and just got on with it.

“I just had belief in what they were telling me from behind me, if they tell me we can get this I just trust them so much.

“It’s really amazing.”

Already a world and European quadruple sculls champion, Brayshaw’s achievements as a rower are made all the more incredible by the adversity she has had to overcome to make it to the very top of the sport.

Aged 15, she fell from a horse, was in a coma for nine days and left temporarily paralysed down the left side of her body.

Doctors initially warned her parents – who now live in Whitby – that Brayshaw would never walk again, or be able to feed herself, but she was back on her feet again within weeks.

Having left North Yorkshire to attend university in Northampton, she then took up rowing and went on to excel, earning her first call up to Team GB as recently as 2022.