Matt Ryan - Rowing
Matthew Ryan is a retired Australian rower who has represented his country at two Olympic Games. He was born on June 23, 1984, in Sydney1. Ryan began his rowing career at The King’s School, Parramatta, and was part of the school’s 1st VIIIs of 2001 and 2002, which won the AAGPS Head of the River1. He went on to compete for Australia in the junior coxed four at the World Junior Championships in Trakai, Lithuania, in 2002, where he won a gold medal1.
Ryan made his debut in the senior Australian team in 2005, placing ninth at the World Championships in Gifu, Japan1. The following year, he placed fourth as part of the Men’s Eight in Eton, United Kingdom1. In Munich, Germany, Ryan’s crew placed second in the B Final of the Men’s VIII behind Russia to place eighth overall. This was later improved to a seventh placing overall due to the members of the Russian crew failing doping tests1.
Ryan competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics held in Beijing, China. Rowing Australia had originally selected the coxless pair and eight as the priority sweep rowing crews as they had already qualified for the Olympic Games from the results at the World Championships the previous year. Ryan was selected in the Coxless Four alongside fellow Sydney University Boat Club member Francis Hegerty, as well as Victorians James Marburg and Cameron McKenzie-McHarg. The team won a silver medal1.
In London 2012, Ryan rowed in the Australian men’s eight which placed sixth1. He retired from rowing after this event.
In summary, Matthew Ryan is a dual Olympian and Olympic medal winner who has represented Australia in rowing competitions. He has won a gold medal at the World Junior Championships and a silver medal at the Beijing Olympics. Ryan began his rowing career at The King’s School, Parramatta and went on to compete for Australia in various international competitions. He retired from rowing after competing in London 2012.