Brianna Stubbs (born 13 July 1991) is an elite British rower and research scientist who won two gold medals for Great Britain at the 2013 U23 and 2016 World Rowing Championships. She was the youngest person to row across the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

when she completed the feat in 2004, at the age of 12. Her research is focussed on the metabolism of

ketone In organic chemistry, a ketone is a functional group with the structure R–C(=O)–R', where R and R' can be a variety of carbon-containing substituents. Ketones contain a carbonyl group –C(=O)– (which contains a carbon-oxygen double bo ...

drinks, and has been based at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. In 2014, she was included in the BBC's 100 Women.

Life

Stubbs was born in

Poole Poole () is a large coastal town and seaport in Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east. Since 1 April 2019, the local authority is Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Counc ...

and attended

Canford School Canford School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils aged 13–18). Situated in 300 acres of parkland near to the market town of Wimborne Minster in Dorset, south west England, it is one of the largest sch ...

. Her father, Mark Stubbs, was a

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is ...

. Brianna completed the crossing of the English Channel with her father as part of his preparation for the ocean row. In 2010 she went up to

Pembroke College, Oxford Pembroke College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located at Pembroke Square, Oxford. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale, and was named after ...

, to study medicine. After completing a 3 year Bachelors in Preclinical Sciences, she was awarded an Industrial Fellowship by the

Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 The Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 is an institution founded in 1850 to administer the international exhibition of 1851, officially called the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations. The Great Exhibition was held ...

, in order to study for a D.Phil. in

Physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...

. She joined a research team involved in developing a

drink for use in sports, with her own research focussed on ketone metabolism in athletes, the effects of different ketone supplements on human physiology, and the effects of ketone drinks on appetite. In 2017, Stubbs took the role of Research Lead with a Silicon Valley based start-up,

HVMN HVMN, previously known as Nootrobox, is an American company that manufactures and sells a ketone ester drink, products supporting a ketogenic diet, and nootropic supplements. The company is headquartered in San Francisco. HVMN stands for "Health ...

., where she helped to secure $6 million STTR contract for the study of ketone esters in extreme environments. In 2019, Stubbs took up the role of Lead Translational Scientist at

The Buck Institute The Buck Institute for Research on Aging is an independent biomedical research institute that researches aging and age-related disease. The mission of the Buck Institute is to extend the healthy years of life. The Buck Institute is one of nine ce ...

., working with a research group specializing in effects of ketone bodies on aging.

Rowing career

Stubbs' first involvement in international rowing was in 2007, when she rowed in the GB vs France match race as a spare. In 2009 she won a silver medal as a member of the Junior Women's Four. Stubbs won the Oxford vs. Cambridge

Women's Boat Race The Women's Boat Race is an annual rowing race between Cambridge University Women's Boat Club and Oxford University Women's Boat Club. First rowed in 1927, the race has taken place annually since 1964. Since the 2015 race it has been rowed on ...

in 2010 and 2011, competing for OUWBC. Making the change to the lightweight category and moving to Wallingford Rowing Club, she gained International selection and won the 2013 World Rowing Championships in the lightweight women's double scull, with Eleanor Piggott. Stubbs gained her first senior international vest at the

2014 World Rowing Championships The 2014 World Rowing Championships were the 44th edition of the World Rowing Championships and were held from 24 to 31 August 2014 at Bosbaan, Amsterdam in the Netherlands, the second occasion on which the event had been held in Amsterdam, or ...

in the Lightweight Women's Quadruple Sculls, finishing 6th. At the 2015 World Rowing Championships in France, Stubbs was part of the silver-medal-winning team in the Lightweight Women's Quadruple Sculls, along with

Ruth Walczak Ruth Walczak (born 15 September 1988) is a British rower. Rowing career Walczak made her British junior debut in 2005 and also made four appearances at the World U23 Championships. She won a bronze medal in the lightweight single scull at the ...

Emily Craig Emily Craig (born 30 November 1992) is a British lightweight three-time world champion rower. Rowing career Craig was part of the British team that topped the medal table at the 2015 World Rowing Championships at Lac d'Aiguebelette in France, ...

and

Eleanor Piggott Eleanor "Ellie" Piggott (born 16 May 1991) is an English rower, who won a gold medal as part of the Great Britain rowing squad at the 2016 World Rowing Championships, in the Women's Quad sculls event. Rowing career Piggott comes from Bedford. ...

. At the following year's championships in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

, she was part of the gold medal-winning team in the same event, along with Craig, Piggott, and Imogen Walsh. Since retiring from rowing, Stubbs has qualified for the IronMan 70.3 World Championships twice, in 2018 and 2020. Stubbs qualified for the IronMan World Championships in Kona by placing first in the F30-34 age group at the 2021 North American IronMan Championships in Tulsa OK in a time of 10 hours 15 minutes and 6 seconds.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stubbs, Brianna 1991 births English female rowers Living people World Rowing Championships medalists for Great Britain Alumni of Pembroke College, Oxford People from Poole BBC 100 Women