Bath Rowers Win Team GB's First Gold
Women's rowing pair Helen Glover and Heather Stanning have won Team GB's first gold medal of the London Olympics.
Both of them were part of the GB Rowing Team's Start programme at the University of Bath and today as well as getting the first gold, they became the first British women rowers to win at the Olympics.
Glover and Stanning led from the front in a dominant performance which saw the opposition trail in their wake.
The favourites, they crossed the line in 7 minutes, 27.13 seconds. Australia took silver, a length back, with New Zealand earning the bronze.
After finishing Glover and Stanning hugged each other with joy and saluted the crowd, which included Princes William and Harry and the Princess Royal.
Stanning told the BBC: "I'm absolutely shattered and absolutely ecstatic at the same time. I want to collapse but I'm just so overjoyed, I just want to jump around at the same time."
Glover appeared to smile as the pair approached the finish line. "It was probably a grimace," she said. "I don't remember smiling because I never remember thinking we've got this."
Prime Minister David Cameron hailed the rowers' success during a visit to the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland.
"Fantastic news, well done to them, a great success for the United Kingdom team," he said.
Sports minister Hugh Robertson said: "It is an absolutely fantastic result. First home gold and the first ever female rowing gold medal, so two pieces of Olympic history and a really great race."
Stanning, 27, a British army captain, and Glover, 26, a former physical education teacher, are unbeaten in 2012 and set an Olympic-best time in the heats. They have only been rowing together for three years.
The pair were never threatened during the race. After 1,000 metres they were 3.42 seconds ahead, and more then five seconds ahead of New Zealand at the 1,500-metre marker.
As they raced along the packed the grandstands in the final 300 meters, they visibly tired but were too far ahead to be caught.
There are high hopes of more gold later today when Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins competes in the men's road cycling time trial.
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