Jacob Dawson, a member of Team GB’s rowing team, has triumphed over a near-fatal pulmonary embolism to qualify for his second Olympic Games. The Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist, now 30, contracted COVID-19 in April 2022 and soon experienced severe pain while doing routine tasks.
“It felt quite strange but I thought I’d take some paracetamol and try to sleep it off,” Dawson recalled. “Five minutes later I was lying on the floor, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak.” Initially misdiagnosed with stressed ribs, Dawson’s condition worsened, leading to the discovery of a life-threatening blood clot after his lung partially collapsed.
Following immediate medical intervention and a period of recovery, Dawson returned to his training base at Caversham. “It’s given me a new lease of life,” he said. “When the days are as bad as they can be, it can always be worse.”
Now fully recovered, Dawson is set to compete in the men’s eight at the Paris 2024 Olympics. The crew, which includes Sholto Carnegie, Rory Gibbs, Morgan Bolding, Charlie Elwes, Tom Digby, James Rudkin, Tom Ford, and coxswain Harry Brightmore, has achieved significant success, winning all major titles this Olympiad.
“We criticise each other heavily just because we want the best out of each other,” said Dawson. “It’s only professional – it never gets personal.”
Dawson is among the 42-strong rowing squad representing Team GB, which includes both debutants and returning Olympians. Notably, two-time gold medallist Helen Glover will compete, aiming to become the first British mother of three to win an Olympic medal.
