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OLYMPICS: End of the row for Uganda’s Kathleen Grace Noble

Paris, France | THE INDEPENDENT | Kathleen Grace Noble who made history as the first Ugandan to compete in Olympic rowing, will retire from the sport at the end of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Noble, an Irish-Ugandan athlete, declared her decision after finishing second in the semi-final E/F 2 in the women’s single sculls on Monday, securing her place in the finals on Friday.

The 29-year-old rowed the 2000m distance in 8:38:70 minutes, trailing Algerian Nihed Benchadli, who won the race in 8:34:67 minutes, and ahead of Nicaragua’s Evidelia Jarquin Gonzalez, who finished in 8:43:78 minutes.

“I am retiring. Friday is my last race,” Noble announced after the race before adding; “I want to move on new of life, I want to start a new life, I want to focus on my career, am very happy to wrap up the season and focus on something else,” she said.

Noble has had a grueling schedule, competing for three consecutive days. She participated in the heats on Monday, aiming for a top-three finish to secure a quarterfinal spot but ended up fifth. On Sunday, she competed in the repechage for another shot at the quarterfinals but finished behind Alonso and Sanguineti, missing out again.

According to the qualification rules, athletes who do not directly qualify through the heats (where only the top three advance) get another chance in the repechage round. In the repechage, only the top two athletes from each group advance to the quarterfinals.

The Sunday results dashed Noble’s hopes for a medal, relegating her to the semi-final E/F 2, a stage for determining rankings for rowers out of medal contention. She has now qualified for the E/F 1 final, which will be used for rankings only.  Noble has already joined a select group of athletes who have competed in two different Olympic editions and more and remains the only Ugandan athlete to compete in rowing at the Olympics.

She told journalists after her race on Monday that for Uganda to have stars at the Olympics in rowing, the focus should be turned to growing the sport back home in general rather than looking for someone who will qualify for the next edition.

“I honestly think we need to take the focus off trying to qualify someone early and try to create a community that is vibrant within the country before people try to compete at the world stage,” she said.

Born on December 20, 1994, in Nakaseke, Luweero Triangle, to Dr. Gerry Noble and teacher Moira Noble, Kathleen holds dual citizenship in Uganda and Northern Ireland.

She attended Kabira International School before moving to the United States for further studies, eventually graduating from Princeton University in 2014 with a degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.

Noble’s rowing journey began in 2014, transitioning from a background in swimming. She has represented Uganda in numerous swimming championships, including the 2012 FINA World Swimming Championships alongside Ganzi Mugula Semu, Conrad Gaira, and Joshua Ejilikubinza.

Before the kickoff of the games, she was appointed as co-captain of the Ugandan Olympic team with long-distance runner Joshua Cheptegei. Noble is eagerly anticipating carrying the Ugandan flag at the closing ceremony in Paris alongside her co-captain.

Meanwhile, according to schedule, swimmer Gloria Muzito will be the only Ugandan in action on Tuesday when she takes to the pool to compete in swimming in the women’s 100-meter freestyle heats.

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