Pembroke Alumna Annabel Eyres (1984) Selected as Olympian Artist for Paris 2024

Annabel Eyres first learnt to row during her time at Pembroke, where she studied Fine Art between 1984 and 1988. By 1992, she had rowed in two Oxford-Cambridge Boat Races and was heading to Barcelona for the Olympic Games that summer. This year, Annabel makes her return to the Games, though in a form more closely related to her degree subject than her extracurricular activities – as an Olympic artist. 

Selected from over 130 applicants of former Olympic athletes who are also professional artists, only six artists made the cut for Paris 2024. In a recent interview with the BBC, Annabel described her Olympic artworks as “collages and papercuts” depicting “six different sports”, citing the work of photographer Eadweard Muybridge as an inspiration for the pieces. The inclusion of Olympic artists in this year’s Games harks back to an older tradition of a ‘cultural Olympics’, which faded out in the late 1940s but has been revived in recent years.

Though her involvement in this Games is more artistic than athletic, Annabel has not hung up her unisuit just yet, as she continues to row in her spare time and competed in the Oxford-Cambridge Women’s Veteran Boat Race last year. 

Many congratulations to Annabel! You can view her artwork here.