Rob Baker

Chief Coach, Men

Rob began his CUBC career as Assistant Coach in 2001, leading Goldie to wins in 2006 and 2007 plus a win in the Britannia Challenge Cup at Henley in 2003, and in the Stewards’ Challenge Cup in 2008 whilst the Club’s acting Head Coach.

Rob moved to Ireland to lead Irish Rowing’s U23 squad for three years, and then in 2015 returned to Cambridge as the first full-time coach for the women’s squad, overseeing their move to the Tideway for their Boat Race, and leading them to dominant wins in 2017 and 2018 in both Blue and Reserve races. Since the 2018-19 season, Rob’s primary focus has been the men’s squad.

Rob is Cambridge born and bred, the son of a university boatman, and has rowing and Boat Races in his blood. His wife Hayley rowed for Cambridge as a Lightweight and they have two children.

Robert Weber

Chief Coach, Women

Robert, a coach of multiple US Senior and Under 23 medal winning crews, joined Cambridge University in 2019 from Hamilton College, New York, where he was Head Rowing Coach and Associate Professor of Physical Education for the past four years.  In that time Robert has coached three “All Americans” – considered by US College Coaches to be the best rowers in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and numerous Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) Scholar Athletes. In 2015 Hamilton Varsity Eight achieved 3^rd place in the NCAA Division 3 Championships, with the overall team placing 4^th.

Robert has experience of working within an academic environment with both men and women alongside his US Rowing National Team role as Assistant Coach to the U.S. Women’s Senior and Under 23 Team for the last 5 years.  Robert coached the 2018 CUWBC Blue Boat Stroke, Olivia Coffey, to her first World Championship Gold medal in 2013.

Paddy Ryan

Paddy began rowing in his native Australia, going on to medal nationally as an Under-23 sculler. On moving to the UK in 2000, Paddy joined Thames Rowing Club and remains a member to this day. His time there saw TRC earn many Blue Ribbon wins including the Wyfold Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta in 2006 (which he won as an athlete in 2003). Paddy’s wealth of Tideway experience and know-how is a huge asset to the team. He spent six years at London Youth Rowing (LYR), during which he helped to grow the organisation from a small charity to a London-wide group working with thousands of teenagers each year. While there, he won multiple medals at the British Championships and guided many athletes through the GB Junior Trials.

Although intimidatingly tall, Paddy’s kindness is unparalleled. His care and devotion to his athletes brings a special warmth to the club. On top of this, Paddy’s ability to adapt to any rower with patience and commitment, to bring out the best in each rower he works with, is striking.

Nick Acock

Nick began with Cambridge as cox of Blondie in 2003 and started as an assistant coach with CUWBC the following year. Joining full time in 2013 for the move to the Tideway, he coached Blondie and the lightweight women, leading to wins in 2015 and 2017 for the lightweights and 2016 for Blondie. Nick has also coached several crews to wins at BUCS regatta and a win at the elite level of Henley Women’s Regatta. After a spell away, he returned to CUBC for the 2021 season.

Katy Knowles

Katy has been coaching since 2008 when she was a Henley Stewards Charitable Trust coach in Surrey, coaching in local clubs before progressing to Club Head coach in 2011. Under Katy’s leadership the club doubled its junior membership, and Katy coached five junior rowers to Great Britain selection.

In 2012 Katy moved to British Rowing as a Talent Development coach, working with athletes who are complete beginners and taking them through to winning national medals within a few years.  Many of those she has coached have progressed to represent England at Home International Regatta or Great Britain at Junior, U23 and Senior World Championships.

Jordan Stanley

A native of Auckland, New Zealand, Jordan learned to row at Westlake Boys’ High School at the age of 13, proceeding to representative honours at World Junior and University level. Jordan commenced coaching at Westlake in the first year of his university degree and was for three years the Director of Rowing and Head Coach at Westlake. At Westlake, he achieved several National Championship titles, and consistent A-Finals in the New Zealand Maadi Cup.

Prior to joining CUBC, Jordan was Director of Rowing at the University of St Andrews where he made an immediate impact on the program, leading the Club to its best ever result at Henley Royal Regatta, along with a number of wins at BUCS and Scottish Championships.

Henry Fieldman

Coxing Coach

Henry Fieldman started coxing at Imperial College Boat Club, under the leadership of Steve Trapmore, he coxed the GB under 23 Men’s Eight from 2008 to 2010, winning two bronze medals.

Henry studied at Cambridge for an MPhil in Psychology and Education, coxing the Light Blues in the 2013 Boat Race. Henry coxed the GB ‘B’ Eight in 2013, representing Cambridge in the Ladies Challenge Plate at Henley Royal Regatta, winning in a record time of 5:58. In 2014 Henry coxed the GB Men’s Coxed Pair at the World Rowing Championships to a silver medal.

Henry’s role as coxing coach is to prepare the CUBC’s coxes to perform to their potential on Boat Race day. He brings considerable experience in effective communication, tideway steering, race tactics, general psychology and leadership.

Donald Legget

Supporting Coach

Donald rowed in the 1962 Goldie crew, and the 1963 and 1964 Cambridge Blue Boats. He is the club’s ‘Eminence Grise’, having coached a CUBC crew every year since 1968. Donald has coached a string of Henley wins over 5 decades, including crews winning the The Thames Challenge Cup, The Wyfold Challenge Cup, The Visitors’ Challenge Cup, Queen Mother, The Stewards’ Challenge Cup (including the course record), The Ladies’ Challenge Plate, The Silver Goblets & Nickalls’ Challenge Cup, and Double Sculls Challenge Cup.

With unrivalled experience of The Boat Race, Donald’s role with Cambridge University Boat Club is to assist the coaching team and Presidents in their campaign to win The Boat Races.

Dr Simon Owens

Medical Officer

Simon has been CUBC Medical Officer since 1992, and is a member of the British Rowing Medical Panel. He is a General Practitioner based at Trumpington Street Medical Practice. Simon has worked as an Associate Specialist in Sports Medicine at Addenbrookes Hospital for 16 years and is currently an Orthopaedic GPSI  running a community based knee clinic. Dr Owens also works as a private clinician in the Rapid Access Sports Injury Clinic at Progress, the Cambridge Centre for Health and Performance. He is a clinical supervisor and trainer on the Addenbrookes Sports and Exercise Medicine medical rotation and is a Fellow of the Faculty of Sports and Exercise Medicine.

Dr Owens worked as Medical Dispatcher at the Mall and Hampton Court during the 2012 Olympic Games. He has been appointed as an SEM doctor for the diving events at the Commonwealth Games and has been Medical Officer for Cambridge University Rugby Club since 1999.

Helen Davis

Sports Psychologist

Helen Davis (PGCE, MSc, CPsychol and HCPC registered) is a chartered sport psychologist who works with athletes, teams and coaches from a range of different sports developing mental skills to enhance performance. Helen has worked with Cambridge rowers since 2017 supporting athletes throughout the year leading up to the boat race.

She has experience of working with athletes competing at varying levels of competition: fitness enthusiasts, club, elite, regional, national, Commonwealth, World and Paralympic champions.

Helen has over 25 years of experience in education as a teacher, is a sport psychologist for Swim England and runs her own sport psychology consultancy think.believe.perform. She is a regular presenter around Cambridge and East Anglia at sports clubs, schools and athletic networks. She is also an active, competitive Masters and Open Water swimmer. Helen loves to compete and races regularly on the national and international swimming circuit.

Gosia Bieniek

Strength & Conditioning Coach

Gosia holds an MSc in Strength and Conditioning, BSc (Hons) in Sport and Exercise science, level 3 in Holistic and Sports massage diplomas, Rocktape FMT 1 diploma and is also a qualified personal trainer (level 3).

Gosia’s professional and international experience in the field of sport science covers a broad spectrum of sports. In 2010/2011 she worked for the premier league volleyball team ONICO Warsaw as a sports massage therapist, with season 2011/2012 spent in Rome working as a fitness coach for Beach Volley Academy. In 2012/2013 she worked with the POGON ’04 premier league futsal team (Szczecin, Poland). Season 2013/2014 brought new challenges with two international, Olympic athletes Mateusz Sawrymowicz (open water swimming, 1500m indoor) and Kamil Kuczynski (track cyclist, sprint, keirin).

Gosia was responsible for delivering and prescribing strength training for Mateusz and Kamil for the two seasons leading into the Rio Olympics. More recently she has worked with Rob Roy Boat Club and Cambridge Volleyball Club.

Milosz Wrobel

Osteopath – Men, Strength & Conditioning Coach

Milosz has a wealth of experience working with student, national and international athletes.He has been involved with the Boat Races and the Varsity Rugby Matches since 2012 with countless light blue success. He has a degree from Anglia Ruskin University in Sports Coaching and Physical Education as well as Osteopathy from Staffordshire University.

Milosz is an Accredited Strength and Conditioning Coach with the UKSCA (UK Strength and Conditioning Association, no 24431) and a Registered Osteopath with the GOsC (General Osteopathic Council, no 10204). Together with his partner, Gosia, Milosz runs a practice – Light Blue Clinic dedicated to rowing athletes. They are  responsible for sport medicine provision within Men’s team and strength & conditioning to the women’s team.

Tom Quantrell

Physiotherapist

Tom Quantrell BSc (Hons) MSc MCSP  – Tom holds a bachelor’s degree is Physiotherapy and a master’s degree in sports and exercise rehabilitation. Tom has worked in the NHS, private sector and with numerous sports to an elite level.

Tom runs the physiotherapy and sports injury clinic at the University of Cambridge sports centre, Physioteq. Tom shares his time at the clinic and with the rowers with national and international teaching on the subject of children & adolescents with musculoskeletal and sporting injuries and working with the England hockey age group program.

Oliver Whiteman

Nutritionist

Oliver Whiteman (MSc, BSc) is a performance nutrition consultant who is accredited with the Sport & Exercise Nutrition Register (SENr).

Oliver is currently working with elite athletes and clubs in the East of England, providing bespoke support for individual athletes.

He has combined his education and experience to help support some of the most talented athletes in the UK.  Oliver works to educate athletes, empowering them to continue applying effective sports nutrition strategies, even after he has finished working alongside them.

Tina Goode

Tina spent four years with the Royal Anglian Territorial Army as a medic, followed by fifteen years working in the University, first for a college, running events, and then in the University Careers Service. She joined CUBC in 2019.

With two grown up children who both row, rowing has been a big part of Tina’s life for over 10 years, often travelling the country to watch races and – inevitably – rig boats. Tina is married to a nephew of Alf Twinn, the legendary CUBC boatman who defined Cambridge Blue, and who served the Boat Club for over fifty years from the 1930s to the 1980s, breaking off only for military service.

Alister Taylor

Alister joined the staff of CUBC in 2017, after completing an MPhil in Education at Cambridge, and rowing for Goldie in 2016. He brings professional history spanning education, program management, and human resources, focusing on talent identification, management, and improvement.

Alister also acts as a volunteer coach to several Cambridge town and college rowing clubs.

Sam Rickaby

Club Accountant

Sam manages the accounts and finances for all of the Cambridge University Boat Club teams, having joined us following ten years working for the NHS.

Initially she worked as a therapy radiographer having gained her degree in Sheffield and spent a large amount of her career in Cambridge at Addenbrookes hospital. Five years ago she made the big decision to switch career paths into the world of finance but still continued to work for the NHS in St Ives. in March 2018 she returned to Cambridge and joined CUBC.