Moray rower is back on the hunt for Olympic gold

Heather Stanning - Lossie rower back on the Olympic trail.
Heather Stanning – Lossie rower back on the Olympic trail.

MORAY OLYMPIC ROWING medallist Heather Stanning was back on the gold medal trail at the weekend with another stunning performance and a European record in Poland.

Heather and her rowing pairs partner Helen Glover won their European Championship race in Poland on Sunday, quickly establishing their superiority and streaking clear of the opposition.

The Lossiemouth rower is once again back with her Olympic partner after Glover had won the European title last year alongside Poly Swann.

Stanning took time out from rowing after the 2012 London triumph to resume her Army career, serving with the Royal Artillery Regiment in Afghanistan during which time her rowing was restricted to an indoor training regime.

She was back with Glover, however, in time to win gold at the World Cup last year – before underlining their status at the World Rowing Championships where they dominated main rivals New Zealand and the United States.

Now the pair have their eyes firmly set on Olympic success again next year in Rio.

Following the record-breaking victory in Poznan Heather said: “That was a great way to kick-start our season – having a championships event within Europe is really important as rowing is so strong.  Now we will look to improve in everything that we do.”