ROWING: INTERNATIONAL oarswoman Lisa Eyre's dream of winning an Olympic medal has been dashed by injury.

The former Royal Chester rower has had to retire from the sport on medical advice because of a prolapsed disc and stress fracture.

Lisa, who is 34, had been training and rowing full-time for 10 years and competed at Olympic Games in Atlanta and Sydney.

'The injuries are an occupational hazard apparently,' she said. 'My back just wouldn't have been able to cope with the intensity of the Olympic preparations.' Athens was to be her last chance to win a medal for Great Britain, but despite the disappointment she remains upbeat and grateful for all she has achieved in the sport.

'I am going to miss the competition and retirement will leave a big hole to fill,' she said. 'But I was coming to the end of my international rowing career anyway and I have achieved a lot of what I wanted.'

Lisa has been based in Henley-on-Thames for the last few years, but now she is considering her future, which may involve a move back to Cheshire. Her parents live in Tattenhall and have a business in Malpas, where Lisa went to school at Bishop Heber High.

She hasn't worked since the Sydney Olympics and was supported by a grant from the National Lottery Sports Fund as part of UK Sport's World Class Performance Programme.

Lisa was a keen track athlete in her teenage years, but was introduced to rowing by a friend and joined Royal Chester in 1992. Two years later she won a gold at the National Championships in a quad scull, followed by bronze in a single scull.

After moving south in 1995, she made her international debut in a coxless four at the World Championships in Finland, finishing fifth.

The following year she won a seat in the eight and the crew won Olympic qualification in Lucerne, smashing the British and course records. But the crew failed to reach the same peak at the Olympic Games six weeks later and finished seventh.

Lisa stroked the British coxless four to gold and the eight to bronze at the World Championships in 1997 in France. They were the first British heavyweight women to become world champions, and were awarded the team of the year award by The Sunday Times.