Lauren Rachel Catherine Rowles (born 24 April 1998) is a British parasport rower and former wheelchair athlete. She won gold with Laurence Whiteley in the trunk-arms mixed double sculls (TAMix2x) at the

2016 Summer Paralympics The 2016 Summer Paralympics (), the 15th Summer Paralympic Games, were a major international multi-sport event for disabled sports, athletes with disabilities governed by the International Paralympic Committee, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, f ...

.The pair repeated their achievement in Tokyo at the 2021 Summer Paralympics.

Background

Rowles, who is from

Cofton Hackett Cofton Hackett is a village and civil parish in the Bromsgrove (district), Bromsgrove District of Worcestershire, north east Worcestershire, England. It is southwest of the city centre of Birmingham and northeast of Worcester, England, Worcest ...

Bromsgrove District Bromsgrove is a non-metropolitan district, local government district in north-east Worcestershire, England. It is named after its only town, Bromsgrove, where its council is based, but also includes several villages and surrounding rural areas ...

, attended North Bromsgrove High School. At the age of 13 she suddenly developed

transverse myelitis Transverse myelitis (TM) is a rare neurological condition wherein the spinal cord is Inflammation, inflamed. The adjective ''wikt:transverse#Adjective, transverse'' implies that the spinal inflammation (myelitis) extends horizontally throughout ...

(a condition in which the spinal cord is inflamed), which left her with no feeling below her chest. She decided to take up Paralympic sport while watching coverage of the

2012 Summer Paralympics The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international Multi-sport event, multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Sum ...

during a stay in

Stoke Mandeville Stoke Mandeville is a village and civil parish in the Vale of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, England. It is located three miles (5 km) from Aylesbury and 3.4 miles (5.5 km) from the market town of Wendover. Although a separate civil ...

Spinal Injuries Unit. Rowles completed her A-levels at

King Edward VI College, Stourbridge King Edward VI College (KEDST) is a selective state sixth form centre located in Stourbridge, England, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands area. It is situated in the centre of Stourbridge, to the north of the town centre, on the side ...

, and is currently studying law at

Oxford Brookes University Oxford Brookes University (OBU; formerly known as Oxford Polytechnic) is a public university, public university in Oxford, England. It is a new university, having received university status through the Further and Higher Education Act 1992. Th ...

. She is openly gay. Rowles is engaged to Jude, a wheelchair basketball player.

Career

Rowles competed as a wheelchair racer before switching to rowing. She took up the sport in November 2012 and competed in T54 events. In 2014, she was the England under-16s champion at 100 m, 200 m and 1,500 m. She represented England at the

2014 Commonwealth Games The 2014 Commonwealth Games (), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014 (; ), were an international multi-sport event celebrated in the tradition of the Commonwealth Games as governed by the Commonwea ...

, where she was the youngest track and field athlete in the England team at the age of 16. She reached the final of the T54 1500m, finishing ninth. Rowles took up rowing in early 2015. She quickly teamed up with Laurence Whiteley, who had been searching for a suitable partner to compete with for over two years. They competed at 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 the Lac d'Aiguebelette, Aiguebelette-le-Lac in France. Description The annual week-long rowing regatta was organized by ...

, winning the silver medal in the trunk-arms mixed double sculls. She and Whiteley competed at their first Paralympics in 2016, where they set a world record in the heats, and won gold in the final. Rowles was appointed

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(MBE) in the

2017 New Year Honours The 2017 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours were awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

and

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE) in the

2025 New Year Honours The 2025 New Year Honours are appointments by King Charles III among the 15 Commonwealth realms to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The ...

for services to rowing.

References

External links

*
Lauren Rowles OBE
at

British Rowing British Rowing, formerly the Amateur Rowing Association (ARA), is the national governing body for the sport of rowing (both indoor and on-water rowing). It is responsible for the training and selection of individual rowers and crews represent ...

* *
Lauren Rowles
at the

Paris 2024 Summer Paralympics The 2024 Summer Paralympics (), also known as the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games (), and branded as Paris 2024, were the 17th Summer Paralympic Games, an international Multi-sport event, multi-sport parasports event governed by the International P ...

(archived
alternate link
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rowles, Lauren 1998 births Living people Alumni of Oxford Brookes University Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games competitors for England English female rowers English female wheelchair racers British female wheelchair racers English lesbian sportswomen English people with disabilities LGBTQ rowers Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2024 Summer Paralympics Officers of the Order of the British Empire Paralympic gold medalists for Great Britain Paralympic medalists in rowing Paralympic rowers for Great Britain People educated at King Edward VI College, Stourbridge People from Bromsgrove District People with paraplegia Rowers at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Rowers at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Rowers at the 2024 Summer Paralympics Sportspeople from the West Midlands (county) Sportspeople from Worcestershire Sportswomen with disabilities Track and field athletes with disabilities World Rowing Championships medalists for Great Britain 21st-century English sportswomen