Craig & Grant cruise to gold after men win silver

Emily Craig and Imogen Grant won Great Britain’s second rowing gold of the Paris Olympics with a commanding performance in the women’s lightweight double sculls.

They took the lead after 500m of the 2,000m race and pulled away to win by almost a length from fast-finishing Romania and Greece in third.

The victory completes a remarkable run for the duo who have been unbeaten since missing out on a medal at the Tokyo Olympics by 0.01 seconds.

They celebrated by throwing their arms into the air as they added the Olympic title to back-to-back world and European triumphs.

There were emotional tears and beaming smiles as they received their gold medals and went off to celebrate with British fans in the stands.

Their triumph came after childhood friends Oliver Wynne-Griffith and Tom George were pipped to the gold medal in the men’s pair in a dramatic finale.

Wynne-Griffith, from Wales, and George, of England, led for the majority of the race and looked set to win but Croatia’s defending champions Martin and Valent Sinkovic charged past them in the closing 20m and won by 0.45 seconds.

Having put in such a huge effort, the British duo’s disappointment was clear to see, with Wynne-Griffith blaming himself for getting the finish wrong.

“I made a mistake on the line and that’s racing for you,” he said. “Olympic silver medallists, I’m so proud of what we did.

“We had a great start and a great first 1500m, just on the last four strokes it was a case of winning or losing unfortunately.”

Britain has now won six medals including two golds in the rowing competition – three more than they won in Tokyo – with one day left.

Meanwhile, Ireland’s Fintan McCarthy and Paul O’Donovan retained their Olympic lightweight men’s double sculls title with a brilliant performance, crossing the line two seconds clear of silver medallists Italy with Greece taking bronze.

Craig, 31, contemplated quitting the sport after the last Games but instead fronted up to the disappointment by hanging a photo of the Tokyo finish line on the walls of her home in Mark Cross in Sussex.

That memory has helped drive her through the gruelling hours of training and the many sacrifices made over the last three years.

Grant, 28, started rowing at Cambridge University after signing up to join the boat club in exchange for two free drinks during Freshers Week.

She went on to win three Boat Races and has achieved all of her international rowing success while studying to become a doctor.

Now qualified, she will have little time to celebrate before starting her foundation year as a doctor later this month.

They will also be the last lightweight doubles champions with the discipline being replaced by beach sprint rowing at Los Angeles 2028.

Wynne-Griffith, 30, and George, 29, were part of the British men’s eight crew that won bronze in Tokyo.

The friends were both studying at Cambridge University and competing in the Boat Race when a coach suggested they team up as a pair.

They went unbeaten in the build-up to the Olympics this season – winning the European Championships in April – and were bidding to become the first British champions in the men’s pair since Sir Steve Redgrave and Sir Matt Pinsent in 1996.

George praised his team-mate and said they were “clinging on” in the final 20 metres of the final.

“We’re incredibly proud and we’re really happy with what we’ve achieved with each other,” said George. “Doing it with your best mate’s pretty special.

“Despite the last three strokes, with a bit of hindsight we’ll be incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved.”