Dr Jane Thornton

Dr Thornton represented Canada for over a decade in the sport of rowing. She was a world champion in 2006 and took part in the Olympic Games Beijing 2008.

Dr Thornton took up her role as the IOC's Health, Medicine, and Science Department Director in September 2024 after a career in sports medicine practice and research, as Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Western Ontario in Canada, with cross appointments in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and the School of Kinesiology. Dr Thornton holds both a PhD from Western and an MD from the University of Toronto, and her contributions to the field of sports medicine include over 100 peer-reviewed publications. She held prominent leadership roles including that of President of the Canadian Academy of Sport and Exercise Medicine and Editor of the British Journal of Sport and Exercise Medicine. As well as participating as an athlete in the Games in 2008 she had medical/research roles at Athens 2004, Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016. She has also worked with IFs including the IIHF and World Rowing to deliver medical coverage at World Championship events.