Matthew Pinsent: Olympic Rower and Legend

Sir Matthew Pinsent won gold at four consecutive Olympic Games. Two of those came in the coxless pair with Steve Redgrave, and two in the coxless four.

The four golds

• Barcelona 1992: coxless pair, with Steve Redgrave
• Atlanta 1996: coxless pair, with Steve Redgrave
• Sydney 2000: coxless four, with Redgrave, James Cracknell and Tim Foster
• Athens 2004: coxless four, with Cracknell, Ed Coode and Steve Williams

Pair to four

The coxless pair has two rowers, each with one oar, and no cox. Steering is done with the foot-operated rudder, or by one rower adjusting pressure. It is the most exposed boat in rowing, because there is nowhere to hide: if one rower is out of time, the boat zig-zags and slows.

The coxless four adds two more rowers. The four is faster than the pair, but the pressure on timing is different. With four blades in the water, the crew has to share the load, match the catch and finish, and keep the boat level. A rower who excels in the pair does not automatically excel in the four, so winning in both is a good indicator of technique and boat feel.

The 2004 final

The Athens four won by a very small margin over Canada, 0.08 seconds (6:06.98 to 6:07.06). It is one of the closest finals in Olympic rowing history.

A margin that small over about six minutes of racing means a crew has to be at its best for every stroke. Rowing’s 2,000 metre race is usually decided by who can hold their rate and power in the third 500 metres and then find a sprint at the end. A crew that settles too early can lose a race in the last ten strokes.

Background

Pinsent was born in Holt, Norfolk, in 1970, attended Eton College, where he began rowing, and studied at St Catherine’s College, Oxford. He rowed in three Boat Races, winning in 1990 and 1991 and losing in 1993, when he was Boat Club president. He was appointed MBE in 1993 and CBE in 2001, and was knighted in 2005.

The Boat Race is a famous four-and-a-bit-mile race on the Thames between Oxford and Cambridge. It is a good training ground for young rowers, because crews must race over a long distance, in rough water, against a rival.

After racing

He became a well-known broadcaster and commentator on rowing and other sports, reporting for the BBC from Olympic Games since Beijing 2008. His public profile helped bring the sport to a wider audience in Britain. If you are new to the sport, our top rowing FAQ answers the common questions.

What rowers can learn from him

• A pair is the most exposed boat in rowing. Two rowers have to match their strokes closely, and he did that at the highest level.
• Pairing with different partners at different stages is a skill in itself.
• Consistent preparation over four-year cycles matters more than a single peak.
• Close finishes are won in the middle of the race as much as at the sprint, because the crew that holds its rhythm has more left at the end.

To read about his long-time partner, see Steve Redgrave. Our ranking of the top three English rowers of all time sets his record beside other greats. For the wider picture, see British Olympic rowers and the Olympic rowing hub.