Ex-Olympian backs Cambridge heart screening campaign
Tom James was part of Team GB's rowing team at the Olympics
A former Olympic and Cambridge University rower believes being diagnosed with a heart condition shouldn't scare young people.
Tom James realised he was living with atrial fibrillation (AF), which causes the heart to beat irregularly, in the months leading up to the London 2012 Games.
Tom, who was diagnosed with AF in his mid-20s, returned to rowing and went on to successfully control the condition with treatment.
The ex-Olympian said he began to feel "really ill" after returning from a training camp and it was only until an electrocardiogram (ECG) scan revealed he was living with AF.
"It was about 2011-12 and at that time, we couldn't figure out what it was; I'd get on a rowing machine and try to do some training and couldn't pull anything near the splits I'd normally do," Tom said.
"It was very disconcerting because I felt okay, except I'd go home, try to walk up the stairs and found I was very much out of breath."
Tom's backing Clarissa's Campaign for Cambridge Hearts, which has raised more than £55,000 to get more heart screenings in place for students.
The campaign was set up in memory of Clarissa Nicholls, who was hiking in France last year when she collapsed due to arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy.
It is spearheaded by Clarissa's friends Izzy Winter and Jess Reeve and supported by Clarissa's mother Hilary, who said that "80% of people with an underlying heart condition have no symptoms at all and the only way to know if they have a condition is to have an ECG".
Tom, who raced four times in the Boat Race for Cambridge University, wants young people to feel reassured about getting their heart health checked.
"It was scary (AF) and until you find out what it is, you understand the context and for me, I found it was a familial trait so my dad had it, you learn more about it and can adapt around it," he said.
"I know what my pulse should feel like and so I can double check it's not AF; it shouldn't cause you stress and from day to day, I can live a completely normal life but it's something to watch out for later in life.
"It's not about making this into a thing everybody should be concerned about, but every other aspect of life where you look after your health, this is something you should pay attention to, the same way you'd get your teeth checked."