Kevin Richard Light (born May 16, 1979) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

rower Rowing, often called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars (called blades in the United Kingdom) are attached to the boat using rowlocks, while paddles are ...

Early life

He was born in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

but has lived in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

since 1985. He began rowing in grade 12 at Stelly's Secondary School, from which he graduated in 1997. He was enrolled at the

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay, British Columbia, Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. Established in 1903 as Victoria College, British Columbia, Victoria Col ...

from 1997 until 2001, where he was part of numerous Canadian University Rowing Championships teams. The highlight of his university rowing career came in 2001 when the University of Victoria beat the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

at the Opening Day Regatta. Light graduated from the Victoria Motion Picture School in 2004/2005 and then the Western Academy of Photography in 2008/2009, where he studied photojournalism.

Career

Light won the gold medal at both the

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

and

2003 World Rowing Championships The 2003 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 25 August to 1 September 2003 on the lake Idroscalo at Milan, Italy. The international rowing season usually ends with the World Championship regatta. Apart ...

in the eight. He competed in the eight at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

, where he and his crew finished fifth. At the

2006 World Rowing Championships The 2006 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 20 to 27 August 2006 at Dorney Lake, Dorney, Great Britain. Medal summary Men Non-Olympic classes Women Non-Olympic classes Pararowing The Pararowi ...

, Light represented Canada along with fellow Victoria rower Malcolm Howard in the men's coxless pair, where they won the bronze medal. In

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, Light won the gold medal in the eight. He was named to the Canadian men's eight for the

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

, where he won the gold medal with

Andrew Byrnes James Andrew Byrnes (born May 22, 1983) is a Canadian rower and Olympic gold medallist. He was born in Toronto, Ontario and raised in Ithaca, New York. Byrnes is a 2005 graduate of Bates College in Maine, where he crewed for the Bates Rowing Te ...

Kyle Hamilton Kyle Devin Hamilton (born March 16, 2001) is an American professional American football, football Safety (gridiron football position), safety for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Not ...

, Malcolm Howard,

Adam Kreek Adam Kreek (born December 2, 1980) is an author, executive business coach and Canadian rower. He is a member of the BC Sports Hall of Fame and the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame. After his athletic career, Kreek's work has focused upon executive le ...

Ben Rutledge Ben Rutledge (born November 9, 1980, in Cranbrook, British Columbia) was a Canadian Olympic rower and is currently a Mortgage Broker. In Seville, Spain 2002 he was a member of Canada's inaugural Men's 8+ crew to win a gold medal at a World Champ ...

, Dominic Sieterle,

Jake Wetzel Jacob Wetzel (born December 26, 1976) is a Canadian rower. He has represented both Canada and the United States at the World Championships and the Olympics. He was born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. College years As a t ...

and cox Brian Price. In September 2012, he was brought on at

Claremont Secondary School Claremont Secondary School (CSS) is a public secondary school in Saanich, a municipality of Greater Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It is operated by School District 63 Saanich. CSS is one of three secondary schools in the school district an ...

as a coach and manager. For his debut as head coach at the CSSRA in

St. Catharines, Ontario St. Catharines is the most populous city in Canada's Niagara Region, the eighth largest urban area in the province of Ontario. As of 2021, St. Catharines has an area of and 136,803 residents. It lies in Southern Ontario, south of Toronto ac ...

, Light led the team to gold medals in three different events: the senior women's quad, the junior men's double and the junior men's quad. He coached throughout the next three years, leaving in June 2015.

References

External links

*
Rowing Canada – Hwt. Men – 2007 Team
* http://kevinlight.photoshelter.com * http://500px.com/kevinlightphotography
Kevin Light
on Real Champions
''Balls Away''

''ROWING "INCHES"''

''kevin's erg video''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Light, Kevin 1979 births Living people Canadian male rowers Olympic rowers for Canada Olympic gold medalists for Canada Rowers at the 2004 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Rowers from Vancouver Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic medalists in rowing University of Victoria alumni