The Barcelona 1992 rowing gold medallist was joined by a team of 30 volunteers on the River Thames course for the operation.

Participants were equipped with paddleboards, litter pickers, and recycling boxes to carry out the clean-up after the Henley Royal Regatta event which finished last week.

Lynne Lambourne from sustainability organisation Warriors on Waste and Ocean Plastic Pots' Ally Mitchell were among the volunteers, as well as students from local schools.

"On behalf of Henley Royal Regatta, I want to thank everyone who came out this morning for the Regatta river clean-up and particularly Lynne for all her continued support," Searle, part of the Henley stewards who organise the Royal Regatta, said. 

"As an organisation we have made sustainability a core part of our mission.

"We are always keen to lead the way as an event, establish good habits and inspire them in others."

Searle admitted that major sports events had to play a leading role in ensuring that they remained sustainable.

"We're a large event and we acknowledge that it's our job to take responsibility for the clean-up on and off the water," he said. 

"The clean-up is an example of real Henley spirit.

"The river is central to the origin and life of Henley and as a Regatta and a town we want to look after it."

The river clean-up is part of the Regatta's commitment to preserving the environment of the river."

Organisers claimed it is also a recognition of the need to protects rivers that connect rowing communities. 

A theme of this year's clean-up was how pollution can start in rivers and end up in the ocean.

"Considering we have just had such a large event, with hundreds of thousands of people over six days, there was only a small amount of plastic pollution," Lambourne, who set up Warriors on Waste six years ago, said.

"Sadly, as usual, the main polluter was the single-use plastic, particularly water bottles and cups.

"However, in general it would suggest spectators are using the bins and the waste removal services are working.

"Small actions make a big difference.

"Clean-ups help reduce plastic pollution but they also help us monitor the state of the river and see the type of waste which companies could do better with in their sustainable packaging and waste disposal."