Olympian Cracknell made counselling charity patron

James Cracknell, the double Olympic gold medal-winning rower, has become a counselling charity's first patron after benefiting from mental health help.

He was seriously injured in 2010 as he tried to cycle, row, run or swim from Los Angeles to New York, which left him with epilepsy and a lost sense of smell and taste.

Cracknell is now Riverside Counselling Service's first patron and he will take part in a special fundraising event for the Henley-on-Thames-based charity in May.

"I appreciate things now that I didn't appreciate, having nearly died, on a daily basis," he told BBC Radio Berkshire.

"But one of the things I notice with my kids is that in their early years, I was present physically but not mentally. Now that has changed massively.

"Making the most of that and being present both in your head and in the room is so different. Our relationships have changed because of that."

He found life harder after he retired from rowing and lost the structure sport brought but said he was initially sceptical of asking for psychological help.

"We would meet up at 7:30 every morning, go rowing, have breakfast, go rowing, have lunch, have an afternoon sleep and then go rowing," he added.

"The stresses of life after that when you have children and a job, and things are more subjective than the objective nature of sport, it does become much harder."

Cracknell, who was appointed OBE in 2005 for services to sport and lives in Henley, said he only regretted not using counsellors earlier.

"When I went to therapy, for the first couple of sessions, I thought, 'Why am I telling someone I don't know things I don't tell my best friend or my wife?'," he explained.

"When you get to know them you get to trust them and know that nothing's going to leave the room and they give you coping strategies. They don't judge you.

"It's amazing how much it can add to your life."

Cracknell is supporting the charity's current fundraising drive and will join its donors on a VIP champagne evening river cruise on 13 May.

"Riverside Counselling Service started out in Henley and having one of this country's most successful Olympic rowers as our patron who is back living in Henley feels incredibly apt," the charity's CEO Sophie Wellings said.

"We are very confident that James will make a wonderful spokesperson for our cause."

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