‘I was completely incapacitated’: Olympic rowing legend recounts how a wasp sting nearly killed her

Silken Laumann is opening up about a near-death experience she had in 2025.

As Canadian Olympic rowing legend Silken Laumann rang in the new year, she decided it was time to share the story of how her life nearly ended in 2025.

“I wasn’t ready to do this until I felt comfortable talking about it without feeling that little bit of shock and trauma by telling the story,” said Laumann.

The three-time Olympic medalist moved from Victoria to New Zealand in 2022. A year later, she was surprised when she experienced an allergic reaction to a wasp sting.

“I’ve been stung by many wasps and probably some bees—I’m outside all the time, I live outside—so when I had an extreme reaction two years ago, that was really shocking to me,” said Laumann.

While it wasn’t confirmed to be anaphylaxis, Laumann said an emergency doctor told her, “Well, you might want to carry an EpiPen.”

That advice saved her life in February of 2025, when Laumann headed out for a hike with her family.

“My husband just as I was leaving said, ‘Oh, you should probably take your EpiPen.’ So I grabbed it, put it in my fanny pack and off we went,” Laumann recounted.

While hiking, she felt a wasp sting her back. Within a minute, she was on the ground.

”A tiny wasp, a tiny little sting, completely incapacitated me,” she said. Laumann lost consciousness just as her brother administered the EpiPen.

“I just remember coming to shaking and feeling nauseous and sweating, and I just knew right away, I said, ‘We got to get out of here because I’m going to have a second reaction,’” said Laumann.

While they waited for emergency services, Laumann felt her life slipping away.

“I collapsed again, and I was on the trail and I was looking at this tree. I just thought, wow, like, this is unexpected. You know, I really didn’t think I would die this way,” she said.

Laumann had overcome extreme adversity before. She nearly lost her leg a horrific rowing accident in 1992. Against all odds, 10 weeks later she came back to win a bronze medal at the Barcelona Olympics.

She believes her years of training helped keep her alive in the woods.

“Being a high-level athlete, I mean, that never leaves you. It’s always there. I respond very calmly in emergency situations,” said Laumann.

A rescue helicopter arrived just as Laumann suffered a second anaphylactic attack. Medics saved her life.

“I always have my year-end reflection, and as I reflected on it, it’s just like, this story needs to be told,” Laumann said. “For me, it was the most significant event in 2025 and probably one of the most significant events in my life.”

The near fatal anaphylactic attacks have left Laumann worried about future wasp stings.

“The really frightening part for me is that I lose consciousness so quickly,” she said. “I question, will I even get to the EpiPen in time? And so there’s this sense not of doom, but of knowing that I have to be really prepared. And there’s a vulnerability that wasn’t there before.”

Laumann is telling her story as a warning to anyone who has a known allergy, but doesn’t think this could happen to them.

“Absolutely you have to take it seriously. And the EpiPen will save your life. I mean, that’s the thing. If you don’t have an EpiPen, you will die. That’s how it ends,” she said. ”Just build it into your routines. I have it in a fanny pack that I just grab every time I go take the dogs for a walk, or I go out into the garden.”

In 2026, Laumann is looking forward to continuing her podcast and she’s writing a second book.

“Getting old is a privilege,” she said. “I almost didn’t get more time, and I don’t want to waste it.”