Last updated at 15:51, Thursday, 16 August 2012

HEXHAM'S Olympic rowing star Matt Wells returned to his home town on Thursday ahead of his spectacular send-off.

The 33-year-old former Queen Elizabeth High School Rowing Club member brought his international rowing career to an end after London 2012, his fourth Olympic Games.
To mark more than a decade at the top of the game, 10 Olympians will compete on the water at Hexham on Saturday in the celebratory Matt Wells Jubilee Sprint Regatta.
Included among the competitors will be London 2012 bronze medallists Alan Campbell, James Foad and Matthew Langridge, while the gold medal winning double of Sophie Hosking and Katherine Copeland will be mingling with the crowds.
Matt said: "I love being back home in Hexham and I am excited about all that is coming up.
"I think it will be a great event and I am pleased that I am able to give something back to where it all started.
"It will be a great thing for me to make my last stroke in the same place where I made my first."
Saturday's event, which also includes regattas for local and university rowers and a family fun day, will run between 11am and 5pm.

First published at 15:49, Thursday, 16 August 2012
Published by http://www.hexhamcourant.co.uk