{{short description|Australian rower}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2016}} {{Use Australian English|date=August 2016}} {{Infobox sportsperson | name = Cameron Girdlestone | image = | image_size = | caption = | birth_date = | birth_place = Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |education= The King's School |sport = Rowing |country = Australia | nationals = President's Cup 2010,19-21 <br> King's Cup 2016 <br> Aust champion (4X) 2019,21-22 <br> Aust champion (2X) 2019 <br> Aust champion (1X) 2021 | club = Sydney University Boat Club | headercolor = skyblue | show-medals = yes | medaltemplates = {{MedalSport|Men's rowing}} {{MedalCountry|{{AUS}}}} {{MedalOlympic}} {{MedalSilver|2016 Rio de Janeiro|Quad scull}} {{MedalBronze|2020 Tokyo|Quad scull}} {{MedalCompetition|World Championships}} {{MedalSilver|2015 Aiguebelette|M4x}} }}
'''Cameron Girdlestone''' is an Australian representative rower. He is a five-time Australian national champion, a medalist at World Championships, a dual Olympian and an Olympic silver and bronze medallist. He raced in the Australian men's quad scull at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics to a bronze medal.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://rowingaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Copy-of-2021-Australian-Team-as-nominated-5.3.2021.pdf |title=2021 Australian Olympic Crews |access-date=21 May 2021 |archive-date=18 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518130323/https://rowingaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Copy-of-2021-Australian-Team-as-nominated-5.3.2021.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://rowingaustralia.com.au/2021/06/13/rowers-ready-for-olympic-regatta-with-38-athletes-selected-to-australian-olympic-team/ |title=Firmed Australian 2021 crews |access-date=26 March 2023 |archive-date=15 June 2021 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210615125441/https://rowingaustralia.com.au/2021/06/13/rowers-ready-for-olympic-regatta-with-38-athletes-selected-to-australian-olympic-team/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Personal life == Cameron Girdlestone was born in Sydney and attended Samuel Gilbert Primary school. He took up rowing at high school at The King's School, Parramatta.{{cn|date=February 2025}}
He is{{when|date=February 2025}} a PDHPE{{explain|date=February 2025}} teacher at Sydney Church of England Grammar School.{{cn|date=February 2025}}
At the conclusion of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics he was elected as a member of the AOC's Athlete's Commission.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.olympics.com.au/news/aoc-athletes-commission-election-results/?fbclid=IwAR0YX0gxnhY-uRu9fbmRnRParah_m6E0FOazNuTTgyq2QzBuR7CcN4A35cA |title=AOC Athletes Commission Aug 2021 |access-date=26 March 2023 |archive-date=9 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210809012858/https://www.olympics.com.au/news/aoc-athletes-commission-election-results/?fbclid=IwAR0YX0gxnhY-uRu9fbmRnRParah_m6E0FOazNuTTgyq2QzBuR7CcN4A35cA |url-status=live }}</ref>
==Club and national career== Girdlestone rows from the Sydney University Boat Club. He first rowed in the Interstate Regatta at the Australian Rowing Championships in 2010 representing New South Wales in the men's single scull in the President's Cup event. In 2016 he was seated in the New South Wales state eight which placed second in the King's Cup that year.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.australianrowinghistory.com.au/interstate-championships/2016.php#M8 |title=2016 Australian Interstate Championships |access-date=27 July 2019 |archive-date=11 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200111011157/https://www.australianrowinghistory.com.au/interstate-championships/2016.php#M8 |url-status=live }}</ref>
At the 2019 Australian Championships he won the open men's double scull national title with his SUBC clubmate Campbell Watts and he stroked a composite quad scull to win the open men's quad title. In 2021 he won an Australian Championship title in the open men's single scull<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ra.rowingmanager.com/?regatta;file=15359 |title=Australian Rowing Championships results |access-date=3 May 2021 |archive-date=3 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503131434/https://ra.rowingmanager.com/?regatta;file=15359 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and also won a national title in the open men's quad scull.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.rowinghistory-aus.info/national-championships/2021 |title=Guerin-Foster 2021 Australian national championship results |access-date=17 May 2021 |archive-date=22 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210622201105/https://rowinghistory-aus.info/national-championships/2021 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2019 and 2021 he was the New South Wales representative sculler to contest the President's Cup at the Interstate Regatta.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ra.rowingmanager.com/?regatta;file=12212 |title=2019 Australian Rowing Championships results |access-date=31 March 2019 |archive-date=10 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200110171725/https://ra.rowingmanager.com/?regatta;file=12212 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 2022 he won another national open men's quad scull title in a composite Australian selection crew.
==International rowing career== At the 2015 World Rowing Championships on Lac d'Aiguebelette in Aiguebelette France he finished 2nd in the men's quadruple sculls (M4x) event, rowing with David Crawshay, Karsten Forsterling and David Watts.<ref name="Career" />
In the quadruple scull at the 2016 Rio Olympics in a crew with James McRae, Karsten Forsterling and Alexander Belonogoff he won the silver medal.<ref name="Career" /> In 2019 he was selected with Alex Purnell, David Watts and Caleb Antill to row Australia's quad scull for the 2019 international season. They placed 2nd at the World Rowing Cup II in Poznan and 4th at WRC III in Rotterdam.<ref name="Career">{{Cite web |url=https://worldrowing.com/athlete/cameron-girdlestone?id=23477 |title=Girdlestone at World Rowing |access-date=26 March 2023 |archive-date=28 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220728133420/https://worldrowing.com/athlete/cameron-girdlestone?id=23477 |url-status=live }}</ref> With Hamish Playfair and Campbell and David Watts, Girdlestone was selected to race Australia's quad scull at the 2019 World Rowing Championships in Linz, Austria.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.worldrowing.com/assets/pdfs/WCH_2019_1/ROW-------------------------------_C32A.pdf |title=2019 WRC entry list |access-date=23 August 2019 |archive-date=23 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190823105705/http://www.worldrowing.com/assets/pdfs/WCH_2019_1/ROW-------------------------------_C32A.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> The quad were looking for a top eight finish at the 2019 World Championships to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://rowingaustralia.com.au/2019/08/21/australia-aims-to-qualify-14-boats-for-tokyo-2020/ |title=2019 World Championship selections |access-date=26 August 2019 |archive-date=25 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220325214015/https://rowingaustralia.com.au/2019/08/21/australia-aims-to-qualify-14-boats-for-tokyo-2020/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> They won their heat and placed third in semi-final, thereby qualifying the boat for the A-final and the Tokyo 2020.<ref name="Career" /> They finished in fourth place.<ref name="Career" />
By the time of national team selections in 2021 for the delayed Tokyo Olympics, Girdlestone was the sole crew member who'd qualified the boat for Tokyo to be picked to race it. Girdlestone was selected at stroke with Caleb Antill, Luke Letcher and Jack Cleary in the other seats.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://rowingaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Copy-of-2021-Australian-Team-as-nominated-5.3.2021.pdf |title=Rowing Australia 2021 Olympic Team |access-date=21 May 2021 |archive-date=18 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518130323/https://rowingaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Copy-of-2021-Australian-Team-as-nominated-5.3.2021.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> This combination had won the Australian national title in the quad in 2021. In Tokyo the quad won their heat and progressed straight to the A final. They were behind the lead for much of the race but winds had blown up before the event and some crews struggled with their blade-work in the chop. With Girdlestone sculling at three Australian quad kept their composure and technique and managed a bronze medal finish on the line.<ref name="Career" />
== References == <!--- See Wikipedia:Footnotes on how to create references using <ref></ref> tags which will then appear here automatically --> {{Reflist|30em}}
==External links== * {{World Rowing}} * {{Olympedia}} * {{Olympics.com profile}} * {{AOC profile}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Girdlestone, Cameron}} Category:1988 births Category:Living people Category:Australian male rowers Category:Olympic rowers for Australia Category:Olympic silver medalists for Australia Category:Olympic bronze medalists for Australia Category:Olympic medalists in rowing Category:Rowers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Category:Rowers at the 2020 Summer Olympics Category:Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics Category:Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Category:World Rowing Championships medalists for Australia Category:21st-century Australian sportsmen Category:Rowers from Sydney Category:Sportsmen from New South Wales Category:People educated at The King's School, Parramatta