The story of one man's extraordinary comeback in search of Olympic gold
Twenty years ago, rower Greg Searle won Gold in the Coxed Pair alongside his brother Jonny, at the Barcelona Olympic Games. At the age of 20, he received an MBE, and by the time he had reached his mid-thirties, his glorious career as an international athlete was over. Or was it?
If Not Now, When? is a book about obsession; about the drive to be the best you can be, whatever your age. In April 2010, and almost two decades older than the rest of the British rowing squad, Greg made the decision to come out of retirement and go for gold again at the London 2012 Olympics. His journey gets to the very heart of what it means to compete, in any walk of life. Whether Greg realizes his dream will be revealed in the climactic chapter: the Olympic final in August 2012. Lose, he will be a hero for having made the final, at the age of 40. Win, he will be a legend. Greg Searle won a dramatic Olympic gold medal, aged twenty, with his brother Jonny and their cox Garry Herbert in 1992. In recognition of this achievement Greg became one of the youngest ever recipients of an MBE. He and Jonny took the bronze at Atlanta in the coxless four (1996) and Greg retired from international rowing after the Sydney Olympics in 2000. He is currently a director of Lane4, a company established by former Olympic swimming champion Adrian Moorhouse offering lessons learned in sport to the business community.
