Former Hartpury College A-level student Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne recently won a bronze medal for Great Britain, competing in the Women’s Double Sculls at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Mathilda and her partner Becky Wilde held off a late challenge from their Dutch counterparts. The bronze medal contributed to an impressive haul for British rowing, improving on an unusually quiet Tokyo Games for Team GB just three years ago. The pair were coached by fellow Hartpury alum, Tom Pattichis who became a British Rowing high-performance coach following his role as Rowing Head Coach at Hartpury University and Hartpury College.
Mathilda was one of the first students to go through the Hartpury Rowing Programme, a set-up that is now widely regarded for producing outstanding student rowers. She made her Olympic debut in Tokyo as part of the Women’s Quadruple Sculls squad before briefly taking time out to become a mum.
The 29-year-old returned to the water to book her place at Paris 2024 at the final Olympic qualification regatta. Her rowing career started at Hereford Rowing Club, inspired by the sport’s representation in the film ‘The Notebook’.
Away from the Olympic Games, Hartpury staff and students have also been catching the eye of selectors at several other championship events.
U23 and U19 World Championships – St Catharines, Canada (18-25 August 2024)
British Rowing has confirmed the crews for the U23 and U19 World Championships. Hartpury has five students and alumni representing Great Britain.
Ben Jackson will coach the U23 women’s pair, while current A-level students Elliott Donovan-Davies and Catherine Gardner have been selected in the U23 men’s quad and U19 women’s quad respectively. Hartpury alum Fergus Woolnough has been selected in the U23 men’s four, while fellow alum Sam Sheppard will be their coach.
Home International Regatta – Strathclyde Park, Scotland (27 July 2024)
A-level student Chloe Sheppard and BSc (Hons) Veterinary Nursing student Ellie Dash were selected to race in the women’s double and quad, winning both events. MSc Sports Coaching studentship coach Steph Welsh was selected to coach the senior women’s sculling squad, who won each of the five events.
A-level student George Coates was selected in the Welsh junior quad and double, winning gold in the quad sprint event. Pathway coach Tom Jenkinson coached George alongside several other rowers as the Welsh U19 men’s assistant coach
Coupe de la Jeunesse – Czechia (10-11 August 2024)
Millie Hurrell (Level 3 Extended Diploma Sports and Exercise Science and DiSE student was selected to compete in the women’s double, where she finished in third place with her partner Adelaide Patient, while Hartpury College’s lead rowing coach Ben Smeeton coached the women’s single.
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Ben Jackson, head coach of Hartpury Rowing Academy and GB Performance Development Academy, said: “Congratulations to Mathilda and Becky on a brilliant bronze. As one of the first students to go through our rowing pathway, it gives us a great deal of pride to see Mathilda succeed. Both rowers are also graduates of the British Rowing Performance Development Academies that aim to identify, recruit and develop future Olympic rowers.
“It’s fantastic to see so many of our rowers and coaches performing so well on the international stage. Inspired by Mathilda and Tom, all our rowers and coaches will be aiming to put forward their best performances in Canada to bring home some honours of their own.”
Learn more about the Hartpury College Rowing Academy and Hartpury University Rowing Academy, or explore British Rowing’s Performance Development Pathway.
