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Josh West
A. Joshua West (born 25 March 1977) is a dual citizen British-American Olympic rower and Earth Sciences professor.[1] He is a two-time World Championship silver medalist, a World Championship bronze medalist, and a four-time Cambridge Blue, and represented Great Britain in the eight at the 2004 Olympic Games, won a bronze medal in the eight in the 2007 World Cup series, and won a bronze medal at the 2007 World Championships in the eight, and won a silver medal in the eight in the 2008 Olympic Games.[2] Early lifeWest is Jewish and was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States.[3][4] His mother is American and his father is British.[4] West attended Yale University for his undergraduate degree, majoring in geology and international studies.[4][5] As an undergraduate he was a member of the St. Anthony Hall literary society and was a member of the crew team.[6] In 1999, West attended Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge for postgraduate study as a Marshall Scholar.[2][6] He completed a doctorate at Cambridge in 2005.[5] Rowing careerAt Yale, West learned to row under Freshman Coach Justin Moore and Varsity Coach Dave Vogel.[5] He participated in the 4-mile (6.4 km) Varsity Eights version of the Harvard-Yale Boat Race his senior year (1998) but lost to Harvard. While studying in England, he earned a spot in the Blue Boat for The Boat Race against Oxford University. Earning a seat in Cambridge's Blue Boat every year until 2002, West and the "Light Blues" defeated the "Dark Blues" twice in those four years (1999 & 2001). In 2000, West lined up against former Yale teammates Alexander Reid and Eirik Lilledahl, who were the stern pair of the victorious Oxford crew.[7] At 6 ft 9.5 in (2.07 m), West is the tallest recorded oarsman to participate in The Boat Race.[5] He also twice won May Bumps headships with Caius Boat Club. Building on his Cambridge successes, West eventually became a member of the British National Rowing Team and won two silver medals (2002 & 2003) with the British Four and one bronze medal (2007) with the British Eight at the World Rowing Championships.[5] West's most recent success came in the Eight rowing for Great Britain at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China,[8] where the British crew picked up a silver medal in a close finish behind the Canadians.[9] Academic careerWest is currently an Associate Professor of Earth Sciences and Zinsmeyer Early Career Chair in Marine Studies in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Southern California.[10][11] His academic focus is on the chemical processes at the Earth's surface, and how they maintain a habitable planet that supports life.[11] See alsoReferences
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