These Russell Group unis produced the most Olympic medal winning athletes at Paris 2024

It’s no shock that Oxbridge thrives at rowing as well as academics

4 months ago

Russell Group uni students have shown us all throughout the Olympics that you can have both brains and brawn. The most academically competitive universities have been doing particularly well, with Oxford and Cambridge both securing at least one gold medal so far. But the top of the medal table isn’t who you’d expect – with two gold medals, the northern athletes are clearly in a class of their own. I guess they just make them a little bit harder up north. And unsurprisingly, rowing is the sport where Russell Group unis have thrived most – six of the 10 medallists from Russell Group unis have been rowers. Here’s a look at the Russell Group unis with most Olympic medals.

King’s College London – one bronze medal

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Laviai Nielsen won a bronze medal as part of the mixed 4×400 metre relay team. Laviai previously studied geography at King’s College London. She also has a twin sister who runs in the hurdles version of the event – I guess that good genetics and geography are what makes an Olympic sprinter.

University of Leeds – one bronze medal

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Sam Dickinson won a bronze medal as part of the mixed triathlon team. He previously studied sports science and physiotherapy at Leeds, graduating in 2019. Sam is a Yorkshire boy through and through, growing up in the North Yorkshire city of York before travelling west to Leeds for uni.

Durham University – one bronze medal

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Lauren Irwin won a bronze medal as part of the women’s eight rowing team. Originally from County Durham, Lauren went to Durham for university, studying sport, health and exercise. Trust me, this is the first of many rowers in this list.

University of Birmingham – one silver medal

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Anna Henderson won a silver medal in the women’s time trial cycling event. Anna studied sports and exercise science at Birmingham and is originally from Hemel Hempstead. The only cyclist on the list, she is one of a kind.

University of Sheffield – one gold medal

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Bryony Page won a gold medal in women’s trampoline, becoming the first ever British athlete to do so. She studied biology at Sheffield and was the subject of curiosity online for her dissertation on the sounds made by dinosaurs.

University of Oxford – one gold medal

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Charlie Elwes won a gold medal as part of the men’s eight rowing team. Charlie initially attended Yale University but later studied medical ethics at Oxford, being part of the boat crew that beat Cambridge in 2022. Another rower – let’s go Doxbridge!

University of Cambridge – one gold medal and one bronze medal

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Imogen Grant won a gold medal as part of the women’s lightweight double sculls team. She studied medicine at Trinity College and won a boat race against Oxford.

Freddie Davidson added to Cambridge’s success by winning bronze as part of the men’s coxless four team. He attended Emmanuel College and has boat race and Henley victories to his name.

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Not just good at being clever but also rowing icons it appears.

University of Newcastle – two gold medals

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The only Russell Group university to have two gold medals, and second only to Oxford Brookes overall, Newcastle’s two medals came from the same event.

James Rudkin and Tom Ford both won gold as part of the men’s eight team in rowing, as Team GB pipped the Netherlands by just over a second at the finish line.

Three on the Tyne, two on the Cam and one on the Thames – Russell Group uni students are just really, really good at rowing.

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