Plymouth’s Jacob Dawson and Chloe Brew have been presented with the Lord Mayor’s Achievement Award in recognition of their performance at the 2020 Olympic Games.
Jacob was part of Team GB’s Rowing Men’s Eights who took bronze at the games in July and with his team-mates Henry Fieldman, Tom Ford, James Rudkin, Oliver Wynne-Griffith, Charles Elwes, Mohamed Sbihi, Tom George and Josh Bugajski crossed the line third at the Sea Forest Waterway in Tokyo Bay. New Zealand won gold and the Team GB boat were pipped by Germany by just 0.13 seconds for silver.
Jacob said: “I am incredibly humbled to receive this award from the Lord Mayor. Growing up, I never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would be stood on a podium at the Olympic Games, but with the unwavering support of my parents, family and loved ones, there’s now a Bronze Medal in my hands. I hope that this encourages others to pursue what they love and to push them to exceed their own expectations of themselves, you never know what an incredible journey it may take you on.”
Jacob, who currently rows for Leander Club in Oxfordshire, was introduced to the sport through the Start Centre in Plymouth at the age of 14. He was making his Olympic debut in Japan, having also been part of the Team GB men's eight team that won gold at this year's European Championships and bronze in the 2019 World Championships.
Also being recognised was Chloe Brew who made her senior racing debut in the Women’s Eights this year.
Chloe, whose father Paul swam for Team GB at Seoul in 1988, first started rowing with Plymouth Amature Rowing Club on British Rowing’s Start Programme.
Brew claimed gold at the 2018 FISU World University Championships in China in the women’s eight but made her Great Britain senior debut in April this year at the European Championships in Italy.
Chloe said: “I had a great afternoon celebrating mine and Jacob’s achievements with the Lord Mayor today. Although I didn’t medal this time, it is still important to reflect, recognise and celebrate the journey and hard work it takes to get to the Olympics. Especially as both Jacob and I begin to train for Paris 2024 and aim for better results. It was also special to have my family there celebrating today as they play a huge part in supporting and making my dreams come true, they definitely deserve a medal.”
The Lord Mayor Councillor Terri Beer said: “This was a fantastic performance from both these athletes and I’m delighted to be able to present Jacob and Chloe with the Lord Mayor’s achievement award.”