| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's Rowing | ||
| Competitor for Ireland | ||
| World Championships | ||
| Gold | 2001 Lucerne | LM2- |
| Bronze | 1999 St. Catharines | LM4x |
| Bronze | 2003 Milan | LM2x |
| Bronze | 2006 Eton | LM4- |
Gearoid Towey (born 26 March 1977 in Fermoy, Republic of Ireland[1]) is an Irish Olympic Athlete and former World Rowing Champion, Trans-Atlantic adventurer and actor.
Towey was born in Cork on March 26th, 1977 and grew up in Kilworth village which is 5km from Fermoy where he was schooled in St. Colmans College and became a member of Fermoy Rowing Club. He was introduced to rowing by his siblings and it quickly became his main sport having flirted with mixed success in athletics, karate, tennis and gaelic games
He quickly rose though the ranks of international olympic rowing, making two world junior championship finals, competing in a junior and senior world championship in the same year (1995) and became a permanent, popular and one of the most successful members of the Irish Rowing Team for the next 12 years until his retirement after the Beijing Olympics in 2008
Towey, along with Ciaran Lewis, attempted to cross the Atlantic Ocean in 2005 in a 23ft rowing boat. After 40 days at sea, having endured two tropical storms and a hurricane on the way, their boat was pitch poled by a 10 meter wave, leaving the men adrift 900 miles from landfall. They were rescued in the middle of a force 9 storm at night by the supertanker "Hispania Spirit".[2]
Towey has also taken part in several "Raids", expedition adventure races covering extreme terrain over 5 or more days using kayaks, mountain bikes, trekking, climbing, swimming and inline skates.
After graduating from Trinity College Dublin with a degree in Natural Science, and after retiring from rowing, Towey trained as an actor at the Bridge Theatre Company in London, making his stage debut as Polixenes, King of Bohemia at the Cockpit Theatre, London in March 2009.