The Gold Four (

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...

: ''Guldfireren'') is the nickname for a Danish men's lightweight coxless four crew who between 1994 and 2016 has won three

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

gold, one silver and two bronze, and eight gold and three silver medals at the world championships, making them one of the most successful crews in rowing history. There were 17 team members in total. The boat class was disestablished after the

2017 World Rowing Championships The 2017 World Rowing Championships were the 47th edition of the World Rowing Championships that were held from 24 September to 1 October 2017 in Sarasota, Florida. Host selection During 2013, Plovdiv and Sarasota, Florida both applied to hos ...

to achieve gender equality in rowing, with the Danish team last competing at the 2016 Olympics.

History

Eskild Ebbesen was the sole constant crew member through the various combinations of crews from the conception of The Gold Four in 1993 to his retirement at the 2012 Olympics (apart from 2009–10 when he had two years off rowing). Other members of medal winning crews include Thomas Poulsen (1993–1999),

Victor Feddersen Victor Feddersen (born 31 January 1968) is a Danish competition rower, Olympic champion and world record holder. Feddersen won a gold medal in lightweight coxless four at the 1996 Summer Olympics.

Niels Henriksen Niels Laulund Henriksen (born 4 February 1966) is a Danish competition rower and Olympic champion. Henriksen won a gold medal in lightweight coxless four at the 1996 Summer Olympics. At world championships, he won one gold and three silver m ...

(1993–1996),

Thomas Ebert Thomas Ebert (born 23 July 1973 in Roskilde, Sjælland) is a Danish lightweight rower who won gold at the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics in the Men's Lightweight Coxless Fours with the Gold Four. He lives near Roskilde Roskilde ( , ...

(1996–2008),

Søren Madsen Søren Madsen (born 31 May 1976) is a Danish rower who won a bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics with the Gold Four The Gold Four (Danish: ''Guldfireren'') is the nickname for a Danish men's lightweight coxless ...

(2000–2002),

Thor Kristensen Thor Kristensen (born 4 June 1980 in Hadsund, North Denmark Region) was a member of Denmark's rowing team, the Gold Four, during the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. Along with Thomas Ebert, Stephan Mølvig, and Eskild Ebbesen Eskild Bal ...

(2000–2005), and Mads Andersen (2004–2008). There were 17 team members in total. Ebbesen's retirement meant the end of a clear lineage through the crews, however his crew mates from the

2012 Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

have continued the heritage of the famous crew. Ebbesen won the Thomas Keller Medal, the highest honour in rowing, in 2013 after his retirement from the sport at the age of 40. The

2016 Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro ...

crew consisted of

Kasper Winther Jørgensen Kasper Winther Jørgensen (born 21 March 1985, in Copenhagen) is a Danish rower. He competed in the lightweight coxless four at the 2012 Summer Olympics, winning the bronze medal. He was a member of the Gold Four ...

(2008–2016),

Jacob Barsøe Jacob Jepsen Barsøe (born 21 September 1988) is a Danish rower who won a silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics and bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, both in the men's lightweight sculls. Personal life Barsøe was born on 21 Sept ...

(2011–2016) and

2008 Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nati ...

gold winner

Morten Jørgensen Morten Jørgensen (born 23 June 1985) is a Danish lightweight rower. He won a gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Lightweight coxless fours together with Thomas Ebert, Eskild Ebbesen, and Mads Andersen. Morten Jørgensen was ...

(2007–2016), who were all part of the

bronze winners, as well as newcomer Jacob Larsen (2012–2016). This combination has already won two world championships since 2012. They reached the final of the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

just behind

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

who eventually also finished ahead of the Danish crew in the final of the Men's lightweight coxless four. Ebbesen is quoted as saying about the Gold Four's approach to rowing:

Our strategy, for every race, was always to be first, to be number one from the beginning of the race. A fast start was important. It became natural for us to do a high stroke rate. It then escalated. I don't think we have many strokes under 40.

To achieve gender equality in rowing, FISA suggested early in 2017 to drop the lightweight men's four from the Olympic programme, and the recommendation was adopted by the executive board of the International Olympic Committee in June 2017. After 23 entries to the

2015 World Rowing Championships The 2015 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 30 August to 6 September 2015 at Lac d'Aiguebelette, Aiguebelette in France. Description The annual week-long rowing regatta was organized by FISA (the Int ...

, this plummeted to just six at the

after the demotion of the event, with no Danish crew nominated. Shortly after the 2017 championships, the FISA council voted to remove the lightweight men's four from the world championships with immediate effect.

Crew members and results

There were a total of 17 crew members. The lowest placing of the Gold Four was in 2009, when the team reached ninth place. After the 2004 Summer Olympics, the team took a two-year break and did not start at the World Championships. Table legend: W=World Championship regatta; O=Olympic regatta; DNS=did not start

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gold Four Lists of rowers Quartets Olympic gold medalists for Denmark Olympic medalists in rowing Danish male rowers Olympic rowers for Denmark Nicknamed groups of sportspeople World Rowing Championships medalists for Denmark Rowing crews