Reed shines light on dealing with adversity in new Team GB podcast

Rowing 27 Jul 20

Pete Reed has won three Olympic golds and five World Championships but his current fight is the biggest he’s faced.

It is a year since the 38-year-old rower suffered a spinal stroke while on a training course with the Royal Navy, leaving him paralysed from the chest down.  

But, far from allowing his new circumstances to define him, he’s become a source of inspiration – using his voice to raise awareness, while pushing his body to its limits as he continues to recover.  

As part of an inspiring interview with Radzi Chinyanganya, he talks us through the moments that made him.  

The full conversation is available on the Moments That Made Me podcast, in association with the University of Hull, and is available on iTunes, Google, Spotify and SoundCloud. Simply search Team GB wherever you get your podcasts from and you’ll find the Moments That Made Me podcast. 

Moment One: Spinal stroke  

It was September 3 last year when Reed walked into his local hospital, complaining of chest pains, numb legs and being unable to urinate.

Ranked Lieutenant Commander in the Royal Marines, he returned to naval life shortly after his retirement from rowing in April 2018.  

He was on a training course and in superb physical shape, completing the tasks with ease.  However, after an early-morning assault course, he first felt the pain.  

He said: “My legs started to feel numb and my walking gait was a bit funny, I had pins and needles too. But the funny thing was, I couldn’t pee. I tried to shrug it off but the doctor sent me for a scan and it showed I had a compromise in my spinal cord.”  

Even though he was struggling to walk, Reed initially improved. It was three days after, when the pain intensified, that the full prognosis became clear.  

“The paralysis got very serious,” he said. “By that point, my partner Jeannie was with me. We were nervous but I thought I’ll be walking again and getting back on that course, no problem. And then I felt the strength drain out of my legs.”  

Reed initially thought he’d be right as rain in no time, back on the assault course, pushing his body to extreme limits again and moving up through the Royal Marines ranks.  

Quickly, those goals changed.  

“My legs are limp at the moment but every day I have a sense of achievement from small things. Initially it was putting my own pants on or picking up something that had dropped on the floor and not having to call the nurse,” he said. 

Reed first spoke publicly in November and has become a source of inspiration. He posts regular updates on Twitter and Instagram, documenting his recovery.

He’s still wheelchair bound but nine months ago he was only able to move one big toe. Now, he can extend his right leg, move his foot up and down, flex all his toes and engage his hamstrings, glutes and hip flexors.  

“I put positive content out and I only use it to document my journey and help a few people. I do have down days, I’m not a robot,” he said.  

“Olympic gold medals are cool and they are nice to show people but the teamwork and challenge and improving is the fun bit. Seeking out challenges and being comfortable with failure means that, even when you are in a trough, you have got more of an opportunity to climb out of it. And if you surround yourself with the right people and that attitude, then life is good.”  

Moment Two: World Championship gold  

Reed first picked up an oar in September 2001, just as a new semester at the University of the West of England was starting. Four years later, he was lining up in a World Championship final.  

The men’s four is GB’s flagship boat, with Steve Redgrave, Matthew Pinsent and James Cracknell all part of its history.  

At the 2005 World Championships in Japan, Reed, along with Steve Williams, Alex Partridge and Andy Triggs Hodge, were the next in line.  

“That is a really big deal. Before then I really hadn’t won much at all,” Reed said.  

“Never in my dreams did I think I would be a world champion. I was rubbish at sport at school and then the union flag is being raised, I am standing to attention and I was on cloud nine. It was brilliant.” 

Moment Three: London 2012  

Reed’s first Olympic gold followed in Beijing as Team GB overhauled Australia in an epic race but four years on, on home soil, the Aussies were out for revenge.  

Team GB, defending three straight Olympic golds in the men’s four, were the overwhelming favourites. 

Team GB and Australia were, as expected, the class of the field. The two boats pulled clear at the halfway point, before Reed and the British boat, to the backdrop of immense noise, put the hammer down and prevailed.  

“We were perfect in the race and Australia were as well. It was a drag race,” he said.  

“In the last 90 seconds of the race, I was doing the calls but the crew could not even hear me because it was so loud. It was like we were flying. It was just the most extraordinary race and feeling.  

“I leaned back into Alex because he had become Olympic champion for the first time and the first thing he said was ‘we get gold post boxes’! He was made up! There were flags everywhere, I shed a tear and thought thank goodness for that.”  

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