How do you define greatness? A mind-bending feat that surpasses expectation and rationality? A moment of authentic surprise that inverts the weight of pressing odds? Or perhaps an incision in the linear unfurling of your heart?
In sport, we are quick to anoint greatness upon each other. A performance that impresses us is often bestowed the virtue of greatness before it can even truly be understood. It is easy to attach brilliance onto bravery and boldness but sometimes the two should not be conflated. True greatness should combine mastery, magnanimity and more than a hint of magic.
The Olympic Games is our ultimate magic show. A procession of truly elite talent, operating at the pinnacle of their sport and thrust forward into a limelight fostered by four years of relative translucency. These two weeks are stitched into the very fabric of competition, dating back to the lore of Ancient Greece, and have transcended the politics of modern society to become the ultimate marker in sporting excellence. To win Olympic Gold gives you immortality of a rare and timeless specification – your story will be perpetuated forevermore, carried forward by the whispers of generations to come, who too aim to climb those sacred steps and join this club of champions. Emerging over the horizon, this time in the blue and red hue of palatial Paris, we are ready for the very fastest in rowing to be crowned.
Step forward, my friends – The Olympic Games have come.
The Stats
Country
Switzerland
Crew Names
Jan Schaeuble (B)
Raphael Ahumada (S)
Average Age
24 years
Olympic Record
N/A
2024 Competitive Record
World Rowing Cup 1: 2nd (LM2x)
World Rowing Cup 2: 2nd (LM2x)
World Rowing Cup 3: N/A
European Championships: 1st (LM2x)
The Profile
Schaeuble and Ireland are one of the youngest combinations in the event, with an average age of just 24, but they’ve made a big impact on the event since they first started racing together in 2022, winning their first race at the opening World Rowing Cup that season. They followed that with European bronze and fourth at the world championships. They went from strength to strength in 2023, repeating their opening World Rowing Cup victory, and followed that up with the European title (Switzerland’s first championship gold in the light double since winning the Olympics in Atlanta). This was followed by a second World Rowing Cup gold at the second iteration of the series and bronze to close out the series. The world championships last year saw them take silver behind Ireland (Switzerland’s first world championship medal in the lightweight men’s double in ten years). They’ve had a strong run into the Olympics with tight contests against the Italians, taking silver at the first and second World Rowing Cups and winning gold at the European Championships. I’m picking them to take gold but it’s going to be incredibly close for the medals, and there’s the added incentive (if one was needed) that whoever wins the lightweight men’s double will remain reigning Olympic champion forever as the event drops out of the Olympic programme after Paris.
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