Olympic medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Men's Rowing | ||
1908 London | Men's coxless fours |
John Robert Somers-Smith (15 December 1887 – 1 July 1916) was an English rower who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics. He was killed in action during the First World War.
Somers-Smith was born at Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, the son of Robert Vernon Somers-Smith and his wife Gertrude. His father ran for Oxford against Cambridge in 1868 and 1869 and was twice the AAA half-mile champion. Somers-Smith was educated at Eton College, where he was 'Captain of the Boats', and Magdalen College, Oxford University, where he rowed for his College. Although he did not row for Oxford, his brother, Richard Somers-Smith took part in the Boat Race in 1904 and 1905. The Magdalen College Coxless four that John rowed with won the Wyfold Challenge Cup and the Visitors' Challenge Cup in 1907, with another double win in the Stewards' and the Visitors' at the Henley Royal Regatta in 1908. , and was selected to represent Great Britain in rowing at the 1908 Summer Olympics, Somers-Smith was stroke of the four along with Collier Cudmore, Angus Gillan and Duncan Mackinnon. This crew won the gold medal for Great Britain, defeating another GB Leander crew, and crews from Canada and the Netherlands.