James Tomkins (rower)

James Tomkins is an Australian rower, born in Sydney on 19 August 1965, and one of the most decorated sweep oarsmen in the history of the sport. He rowed for Australia at six Olympic Games between 1988 and 2008, winning gold in the coxless four at Barcelona in 1992 and Atlanta in 1996, bronze in the coxless pair at Sydney in 2000, and gold in the coxless pair with Drew Ginn at Athens in 2004. The coxless four, with Nick Green and Mike McKay, was nicknamed the Oarsome Foursome. Olympedia records that between 1986 and 2003 he won seven gold medals at the World Championships and, through 2008, was the only rower to have been world champion in all five sweep events. He is listed at 199 centimetres, rowed for the Mercantile Rowing Club of Melbourne, carried the Australian flag at the opening ceremony of the 2008 Games, and held an athlete role with the International Olympic Committee from 2013 to 2021.