View source for Jake Wetzel

{{short description|Canadian rower (born 1976)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2017}}
{{MedalTableTop}}
{{MedalSport | Men's [[Rowing (sport)|rowing]] }}
{{MedalCountry | {{CAN}} }}
{{MedalCompetition | [[Summer Olympics]] }}
{{MedalGold | [[2008 Summer Olympics|2008 Beijing]] | [[Rowing at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's eight|Men's eight]] }}
{{MedalSilver | [[2004 Summer Olympics|2004 Athens]] | [[Rowing at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's coxless four|Coxless four]] }}
{{MedalCompetition | [[World Rowing Championships|World Championships]] }}
{{MedalCountry|the {{USA}} }}
{{MedalGold    | [[1999 World Rowing Championships|1999 St. Catharines]] | Coxed four }}
{{MedalCountry | {{CAN}} }}
{{MedalGold    | [[2003 World Rowing Championships|2003 Milan]] | Coxless four }}
{{MedalGold    | [[2007 World Rowing Championships|2007 Munich]] | Eight }}
{{MedalCompetition | [[Henley Royal Regatta]] }}
{{MedalGold    | 2003 [[Stewards' Challenge Cup]] | Men's four }}
{{MedalGold    | 2007 [[Grand Challenge Cup]] | Men's eight }}
{{MedalBottom}}

'''Jacob Wetzel''' (born December 26, 1976) is a Canadian [[Rowing (sport)|rower]].  He has represented both Canada and the United States at the World Championships and the Olympics. He was born in [[Saskatoon]], [[Saskatchewan]], Canada.<ref name="SportsRef">{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/we/jake-wetzel-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418023440/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/we/jake-wetzel-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 April 2020 |title=Jake Wetzel Olympic Results |access-date=22 September 2018}}</ref>

== College years ==
As a teenager, Wetzel was on the Canadian Junior Cycling team; he only began rowing in the fall of 1997 at the [[University of California, Berkeley]]. His success was immediate and extraordinary.  His collegiate boat was undefeated and won the freshman 8 event at the 1998 [[Intercollegiate Rowing Association]] Championship (IRA). That summer Wetzel tried out for and made the Canadian National team in the pair event (2-) and finished seventh at the World Championships in [[Cologne]], Germany.

In 1999, 2001, and 2002 he again competed for Berkeley where he was coached by [[Steve Gladstone]], this time in the varsity 8.  All three years his boats won the IRA and were de facto national champions.  In 1999 and 2001, his boats were undefeated.  In 2002, his boat suffered a single loss to the [[University of Washington]], but beat Washington on several other occasions including the IRA.

== International competitions ==
Internationally, Wetzel competed for the United States team in 1999 (Coxed Four (4+) gold medal at the World Championships in St. Catharines) and in 2000 (7th place with the Quad (4x) at the [[2000 Summer Olympics]] in Sydney). In 1999, Wetzel was one of the principal subjects in the ''[[Outside Magazine]]'' article "Blood in the Water" on the difficulties and internal competition involved in trying to make a national team boat.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://outsideonline.com/outside/magazine/0999/199909blood.html |title=Blood in the Water |author=Max Potter |access-date=August 18, 2008 |date=September 1999 |publisher=[[Outside Magazine]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100919163843/http://outsideonline.com/outside/magazine/0999/199909blood.html |archive-date=September 19, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

After a two-year pause because of a shoulder injury caused by a mountaineering accident, in 2003 Wetzel returned to the international rowing scene and he joined Team Canada.  Wetzel made the coxless four (4-) and he won a gold medal at the 2003 world championships in [[Milan]], Italy. At the [[2004 Summer Olympics]], Wetzel's boat finished second by inches to Great Britain.

In 2005/2006 Wetzel completed an MSc in Financial Economics at the [[University of Oxford]] ([[Linacre College]]/[[Saïd Business School]]).  He was a member of the victorious Oxford crew in the 2006 [[Boat Race|Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race]].

He also won at the [[2007 World Rowing Championships|2007 World Championships]] in Canada's M8+.

He won the gold medal at the [[2008 Summer Olympics]] in the men's eights with [[Andrew Byrnes]], [[Kyle Hamilton (rower)|Kyle Hamilton]], [[Malcolm Howard (rower)|Malcolm Howard]], [[Adam Kreek]], [[Kevin Light]], [[Ben Rutledge]], [[Dominic Sieterle]] and cox [[Brian Price (rower)|Brian Price]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.tsn.ca/olympics/story/?id=246638&lid=headline&lpos=topStory_olympics |title=Gold in Men's Eight, Bronze in Women's Double, Men's Four |author=The Canadian Press |access-date=August 18, 2008 |date=August 18, 2008 |publisher=[[The Sports Network|TSN.ca]]}}</ref>

Wetzel announced his retirement from international rowing at the Beijing Olympics; Wetzel enrolled in the PhD programme in Finance at the [[University of British Columbia]] in autumn 2008.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=60a56348-19c7-4ca4-8973-23d34f674ebb |title=Wetzel ends rowing career with golden moment |author=Rob Vanstone |access-date=August 18, 2008 |date=August 17, 2008 |work=Vancouver Sun |location=Canada}}</ref>

Wetzel was selected as the most highly decorated rower from the Pac-12 conference when he was selected as its Rower of the Century in 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://pac-12.com/news/2016/5/10/pac-12-sports-report-reveals-mens-and-womens-all-century-rowing-teams.aspx|title='Pac-12 Sports Report' reveals Men's and Women's All-Century Rowing teams|website=Pac-12|date=May 10, 2016 }}</ref> In 2017, he became the first University of California, Berkeley rower alum to be inducted into the Cal Sports Hall of Fame as an individual.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.calbears.com/news/2017/5/10/athletics-news-jason-kidd-highlights-cal-hall-of-fame-class.aspx|title=Induction Night for New Cal Hall Of Fame Class}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080816043500/http://www.rowingcanada.org/national_team/bios/hwt_men_2007/ Row Canada Bio]
* [http://www.theboatrace.org/ Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race Link]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100919163843/http://outsideonline.com/outside/magazine/0999/199909blood.html Outside Magazine Article]

{{Olympic champions – Men's eight}}
{{World champions – Men's coxless four}}
{{World champions – Men's coxed four}}
{{World champions – Men's eight}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wetzel, Jake}}
[[Category:1976 births]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for Canada]]
[[Category:Olympic silver medalists for Canada]]
[[Category:Olympic rowers for Canada]]
[[Category:Olympic rowers for the United States]]
[[Category:University of California, Berkeley alumni]]
[[Category:Rowers at the 2000 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Rowers at the 2004 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Rowers at the 2008 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Saskatoon]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Canadian people of German descent]]
[[Category:Canadian male rowers]]
[[Category:Alumni of Linacre College, Oxford]]
[[Category:Alumni of Saïd Business School]]
[[Category:Oxford University Boat Club rowers]]
[[Category:Olympic medalists in rowing]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:World Rowing Championships medalists for the United States]]
[[Category:World Rowing Championships medalists for Canada]]