Gregg Stevenson hopes to bring his remarkable story full circle by medalling at the Paralympics in Paris with rowing partner Lauren Rowles in the in PR2 mixed double sculls.
The former Royal Engineer Commando worked for Lancashire Teaching Hospitals’ Specialist Mobility Rehabilitation Centre (SMRC) as lead physical training instructor and mental health practitioner, having been referred to SMRC after losing both his legs to an IED blast while on patrol in Helmand Province in 2009.
He still makes regular trips to the centre for support with his prosthetics and has worked closely with SMRC in the build-up to the Games, with the centre helping with his training, including the creation of a cycling leg.
Gregg, from Foulridge, Lancashire, and Lauren go into the Games as reigning World and European champions, and he hopes they can bring home the gold medal to help showcase the work done at SMRC: “It would mean a lot to win any medal, especially gold – for the centre, and the people who supported me right the way through it all.
“For the work I’ve done here at SMRC, the story, and how passionate I am about physical activity, especially for people with disabilities, with some of the health inequalities we experience in Lancashire – it would be a great symbol of all that coming together and something we can all be proud of.”
Having taken up rowing in 2012, Gregg was part of the trials process for the Invictus Games, but decided to row with the GB Paralympic programme and has been with GB Rowing since December 2018, training in Caversham near Reading.
He and Lauren qualified the boat for the Paralympics last year, while also becoming European and World Champions, setting a world record in an undefeated season in the PR2 category.
Following an intense training programme, the work will taper down before travelling to Paris and moving into the athletes’ village next week, before the heats on August 31 – with the final the following day on September 1.
Gregg is not allowing himself to get carried away and dream of topping the podium – for him and Lauren, it is all about trusting the process and taking care of the controllables: “We’re confident we can go there and deliver a performance, we’re both in good shape physically. We just want to go there and do what we do best!”
“My visualisation is to just try and do what we’ve done in our previous races, when it starts to hurt a bit, we know - push on and get over the line!”
Importantly, he feels he is at peak fitness due to the sacrifices and hard work he has put in: “I feel good, I’ve been looking after my body, living a spartan, boring lifestyle, in bed at 9:30pm every night, eating right, taking care of the things that could easily unfold.
“There are probably some nerves there but I’m just trying to be realistic in my approach. I feel like I’ve done a lot of racing, so we have a good routine, we know our warmup like the back of our hand, and I have the experience of Lauren as well.”
Gregg is married to Melanie, with two boys aged 11 and 9, who will be watching him race in person for the first time. But, as he turns 40 in September, will this be his first and last Games?
“The thought has been there about competing at the next Games, but I’m definitely retiring!
“There’s the time away from my family, and in a strange way I really want to get back to work! It feels like I’m closing the circle in my story, and on the back of this I’ll keep banging the drum for uptake in physical activity, better diet, being mobile and improving life expectancy for people with disabilities, avoiding some of the more chronic conditions associated with long-term disabilities. The SMRC is all about that, so stand by for me coming back and banging the drum!”
The Paralympic Games begin on Wednesday 28 August and you’ll be able to catch all the action on Channel 4.
