Emma Twigg

Emma Twigg (born March 1, 1987, Napier, New Zealand) is a New Zealand rower who was the first woman from her country to win the single sculls event at the Olympics (in sculling, the athlete uses two oars—one in each hand—to propel a long, narrow boat through the water). The medal was hard-won after Twigg had narrowly missed out on the podium at the two preceding Summer Olympic Games in the early 21st century.

Early life

Twigg was born in Napier, on New Zealand’s North Island. Her father, Peter Twigg, was a rowing coach for the Hawke’s Bay Rowing Club, where her brother, Jamie Twigg, also rowed. Both encouraged Emma Twigg to try the sport, and in 2001 she began rowing for her school and also for the Hawke’s Bay Rowing Club. As an athletic kid she dreamed of representing New Zealand in the Olympics.

First international competitions

Twigg’s first international competition was the 2003 World Rowing Junior Championships in Athens. She raced in the junior women’s eight event (on a team of eight rowers), and her team came in sixth place. The following year she continued racing in junior women’s eight events, but she began to find success when she switched to single sculls in 2005. That year she came in fourth in single sculls at the U23 (under age 23) World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam and she won the gold medal in the single sculls at the World Rowing Junior Championships in Brandenburg, Germany. She returned to the eight event in 2006 but focused solely on single sculls in following years.

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Beijing 2008 Olympics, bachelor’s degree, and other competitions from the late 2000s

At the 2007 U23 World Rowing Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, Twigg won the single sculls event. Later that year she came in sixth at the World Rowing Championships in Munich, which qualified her for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. At the Games she finished in ninth place. Twigg thereafter continued competing and during the next few years she consistently placed in the top five at the World Rowing Cups (annual series of three regattas) and World Championships in which she competed. She completed a bachelor’s degree (2011) in communications from the University of Waikato.

London 2012 Olympics, break, and other competitions from the early 2010s

At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Twigg came in fourth place, just out of medal contention. The next year she won a silver medal at the World Championships in Chungju, South Korea. Her time was 7 minutes 33.57 seconds, about 2 seconds behind the winner. Twigg’s breakout year was 2014, when she won the World Cup regattas in Australia, France, and Switzerland. Twigg then won the gold medal in single sculls at the World Championships in Amsterdam, with a time of 7 minutes and 14.95 seconds. Shortly afterward she stepped back from competing to move to Europe and complete a master’s degree (2015) in international sports management through the FIFA Master program organized by the International Centre for Sports Studies.

Rio 2016 Olympics and retirement

Twigg returned to rowing in time to prepare for the 2016 FISA European Regatta. Her first place win qualified her for that year’s Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. A second place finish at the World Cup in June set her up for a strong showing at the Olympics in August. For a second time, however, Twigg finished in fourth place, narrowly missing an Olympic medal. Disappointed, Twigg retired and spent a year working in planning and coordination for the International Olympic Committee in Switzerland. However, that work inspired her to rededicate herself to rowing.

Winning gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics

Twigg subsequently decided to see if she could reach the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. In 2019 Twigg won two World Cup regattas before receiving a silver medal at the World Championships in Linz-Ottensheim, Austria. Her time was 7 minutes 20.56 seconds. At the Olympic Games—which were held in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic—she finally achieved her goal of winning an gold medal. With a time of 7 minutes 13.97 seconds, she also set an Olympic record and won by nearly 3.5 seconds, a large margin in rowing.

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Later events and the Paris 2024 Olympics

Twigg placed second at the 2022 and 2023 World Rowing Championships and third at both of the World Cup regattas in which she competed in 2023 and 2024. She also had a strong showing in her first World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals in 2022, placing first in the coastal women’s solo event and second in the coastal mixed quadruple sculls. At the 2024 Games in Paris—which she said will likely be her last Olympics—Twigg won a silver medal in the single sculls event.

Personal life and honors

In 2020 Twigg married Charlotte Mizzi, whom she had met through a mutual friend. They welcomed a son, Tommy, in 2022. Twigg is an advocate for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) athletes. In a 2024 interview with Olympics.com, she noted, “As as a young rower, I never wanted to be known as the gay rower. I wanted to be known as an exceptional athlete. As I’ve gone on I think that talking about my sexuality has become more important because I reflect on the fact that I have a platform and a profile and I can help people. And so I think the more it’s talked about, the more stories that are out there the better.” In 2022 she was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her contributions to rowing.