Team GB duo Imogen Grant and Emily Grant embrace tag as favourites to win Olympic gold medal

All roads now lead to Paris for Imogen Grant after her place in the Team GB rowing squad for the upcoming Olympic Games was confirmed.

Bar Hill-raised Grant, who won three Boat Races with Cambridge University Boat Club, has been called up to feature in the lightweight women’s double sculls alongside her trusted crew-mate Emily Craig.

The pair’s inclusion within the 42-strong squad was never in question given that they have been triumphant in 10 international regattas in a row – form that has seen them crowned World Rowing Crew of the Year.

It also means that they are big favourites to win gold in the French capital three years on from finishing fourth at the Games in Tokyo.

The 28-year-old said: “So much of what we’ve done in the past three years has been informed by the Tokyo result.

“But we’re such a different crew and such different people and have grown so much over the past three years. It’s part of our story but it’s not the only part of our story.

“I think we’re both on the same page in that it’s already been worth it no matter what happens in Paris. It doesn’t feel like there’s much left to prove, so I want to return from the Games being really proud of what we’ve achieved and hopefully that’s a gold medal.

“We pay full respect to our competition though, it’s never a given and you can never assume a result before you cross the finish line.”

Paris 2024 will see the end of lightweight rowing at the Olympics, with changes to disciplines and classes seeing it scrapped for the next Games four years later in Los Angeles.

Grant’s partner, Craig, said: “It means the stakes are a little bit higher as we have the chance to be Olympic champions forever. Speaking to our competitors, we want to make it special and leave a lasting legacy.”

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