ANDY Hodge is happy to put family first as he takes a break from rowing and savours his latest Olympic triumph.

The 37-year-old from Hebden won his third gold medal when the Great Britain men's eight stormed to victory at Rio.

He also admitted that coming home early from Brazil has enabled him to adapt to family life with his wife Eeke and three-year-old son Sebastian.

"I was able to watch the last few days on TV, like everyone else, so it was a nice come-down from the Games," said Hodge.

"As I've had time off, I've been with my boy most of the time and sliding back into being a dad. It's really good to come home and be part of the family unit again. This is real life and I really enjoy it.

"Sometime I remember that I was actually racing in the Olympics but it already seems a long time ago."

While he has not ruled out the possibility of competing at Tokyo in 2020, Hodge has revealed that he has more immediate priorities.

He explained: "At the moment I have to properly support my family, which means getting a job. Rowing has resulted in a zero net income this last year and we can't afford to do this any more.

"When we crossed the line in Rio, my first impulse was to do it again. However, my head must prevail at the moment. If there's a sponsor out there who'd see me carry on, then that would be great.

"I have a job lined up for October which will take me into an industry I have a passion for, so we'll see how that goes."

If Hodge is to challenge for the next Olympics, he will have to commit for 2017 – but he is not going to turn his back on the sport that has given him so much success.

He admits: "I'll give rowing a break for the time being. It's difficult to carry on a bit of rowing while working full time.

"So I'll pick up some other sports while I'm working. I'd like to carry on some other project around the events-side in rowing but that will require some work and investment, so we'll see where that goes."