Gregg Stevenson, a former Lead Physical Instructor and Mental Health Practitioner at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals Specialist Mobility Rehabilitation Centre (SMRC), hailed winning a thrilling gold medal as “epic” after Great Britain’s greatest day of Paralympic rowing.
The former Royal Engineer Commando began working at the Trust’s specialist mobility centre after being referred for treatment following the loss of both his legs to an IED blast while on patrol in Helmand Province in 2009.
And on Sunday, he and rowing partner Lauren Rowles topped the podium in Paris in the mixed double sculls after a remarkable comeback.
Great Britain won three gold and a silver medal on day four on Sunday, with the pair's victory sandwiched between wins in the men's single sculls and mixed coxed four.
Gregg and Lauren had won all their previous 11 international races together, setting four new world records along the way, including in Friday’s heat.
In the final they were adrift of China’s Liu Shuang and Jiang Jijian with only 100m to go in the 2,000m race, but they dug deep to prevail by 2.48 seconds.
The victory is Rowles' third gold following wins at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2021, both with Laurence Whiteley, with this being Gregg’s first.
Lauren is now the first British rower to win three Paralympic gold medals.
Gregg said: “That’s not usually the way we do it! We’ve said in the last few months, we’ve got to race until the last stroke because people will bring something you don’t expect, and that’s what we saw.
“It panned out exactly as Lauren called it. I was really impressed with China, what a row, they took us right until the end.”
He added: “It’s just epic. I’ve struggled with commitment previously, so to turn up, work hard, be a role model for my kids and just hang about with Lauren and do what she does, which is grind and work and achieve, is the cherry on top.”
Gregg, who still makes regular trips to SMRC for support with his prosthetics, had spoken before the Games of his hopes of winning gold to help showcase the work done at the centre: “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 turns 40 this month, and he looks likely to retire from rowing, having said recently: “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!”
Pictures: Benedict Tufnell / British Rowing
