Beth Rodford (born 28 December 1982) is a British rower. Rodford participated in two Olympic games, 2008 Summer in Beijing and 2012 Summer in London. At Beijing, she finished in fifth place in the Women's Eight. In 2012 at London, she finished in sixth position in the

quadruple scull A quadruple sculling boat, often simply called a quad and abbreviated 4x, is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four people who propel the boat by sculling with two oars, or "sculls", one in each hand. R ...

s. She announced her retirement from international rowing on 16 December 2015.

Biography

Rowing at the 2012 Summer Olympics 9174 W quadruple sculls heat2 GBR NZL

Rodford was born in Burton-upon-Trent. Rodford currently lives in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

. She is a student, and is studying Sports Science at

Brunel University Brunel University London is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian engineer and pioneer of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. In June ...

in London, UK. Rodford is in weight, and is tall.

Rowing

Rodford started rowing in 1995. She began rowing when in secondary school, and despite initial difficulties kept going and was first selected to represent Britain in 1999, winning a bronze medal in the coxless four at the

World Rowing Junior Championships The World Rowing Junior Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). A rower or coxswain shall be classified as a Junior until 31 December of the year in which he reaches the age of ...

. She currently trains with the Gloucester Rowing Club (Gloucester RC). She is classed as an official coach and rower. Rodford is trained by six people; Adrian Roberts ( Ade Roberts), Cath Pollard, Gary Stubbs, John Keogh,

Mark Pollard Mark John Pollard (born 13 October 1979) is a Falkland Island politician who has served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly for the Stanley constituency since the 2017 general election. Born in the UK to a fourth generation Falkland Islander ...

and Ron Needs. She holds the British indoor record over 2000 metres at J13, J14, J15, and J16. For much of her career Rodford rowed in a

Quadruple scull A quadruple sculling boat, often simply called a quad and abbreviated 4x, is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four people who propel the boat by sculling with two oars, or "sculls", one in each hand. R ...

(quad scull; W4x) rowing boat, and participated in the Women's Quadruple Sculls event, and the Women's Eight. Rodford received

Lottery Funding A lottery is a form of gambling that involves the drawing of numbers at random for a prize. Some governments outlaw lotteries, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of ...

from

UK Sport UK Sport is the government agency responsible for investing in Olympic and Paralympic sport in the United Kingdom. It is an executive non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport. It was created ...

. Rodford participated in the 2008 Summer Olympics and finished in fifth place in the Women's Eight. She won the gold medal in women's quadruple sculls at the 2010 World Rowing Championships. In the 2011 World Cup series she won silver and gold medals. At the 2012 Summer Olympics held in London, she finished in sixth position with

Team GB Team GB is the brand name used since 1999 by the British Olympic Association (BOA) for their Great Britain at the Olympics, British Olympic team. The brand was developed after Great Britain at the 1996 Summer Olympics, the nation's poor perfor ...

in the W4x class, with a final time of 06:51.54. She was "off colour" throughout the 2012 season. In the 2012 World cup competitions she raced in the women's quadruple scull. In Belgrade and Munich the team won bronze medals. In Lucerne they finished in fifth place.

2014

On 17 March 2014 Rodford was part of the composite crew that won the

Women's Eights Head of the River Race The Women's Eights Head of the River Race (WEHoRR) is a processional rowing race held annually on the Tideway of the River Thames in London on the Championship Course from Mortlake to Putney. A mirror of the Eights Head of the River for mal ...

on the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

in London, setting a record time of 17:42.2 for the 4 1⁄4-mile (6.8 km) Championship Course from

Mortlake Mortlake is a suburban district of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames on the south bank of the River Thames between Kew and Barnes. Historically it was part of Surrey and until 1965 was in the Municipal Borough of Barnes. For many cen ...

Putney Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ancient paris ...

. The crew comprised

Heather Stanning Heather Mary Stanning OBE (born 26 January 1985) is a retired British professional rower, a member of the Great Britain Rowing Team, and Royal Artillery officer. Ranked number 1 female rower in the world in 2016, she is a double Olympic champi ...

– Army RC; Beth Rodford – Gloucester RC; Zoe Lee – Imperial College BC;

Jessica Eddie Jessica Jane Eddie (born 7 October 1984 in Durham) is a British rower. She won a silver medal in the women's eight at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Rowing 2011 She was part of the British squad that topped the medal table at the 2 ...

– London RC; Helen Glover –

Minerva Bath Rowing Club Minerva Bath Rowing Club is a rowing club in Bath, England The club The club was founded in 1914 as Bath Ladies Boat Club (BLBC). It is one of the earliest women's rowing clubs in England and had strong links with the suffragette movement in th ...

; Olivia Carnegie-Brown – Oxford Brookes University BC; Tina Stiller – Tees RC; Caragh McMurtry – Reading University BC; cox Phelan Hill –

Leander Club Leander Club, founded in 1818, is one of the oldest rowing clubs in the world, and the oldest non-academic club. It is based in Remenham in Berkshire, England and adjoins Henley-on-Thames. Only three other surviving clubs were founded prior t ...

.Women's Eights Head of the River Race, Official Results Archive. 2014 results

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rodford, Beth 1982 births Living people British female rowers English female rowers Olympic rowers of Great Britain Rowers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 2012 Summer Olympics World Rowing Championships medalists for Great Britain Sportspeople from Burton upon Trent Alumni of Brunel University London