2025 European Rowing Championships – Men’s Coxless Four Preview

Image Credit: World Rowing

Entries: 12

2024 champions: Ollie Wilkes, Dave Ambler, Matt Aldridge, Freddie Davidson (Great Britain)

One of the most significant talking points surrounding the entries in Plovdiv are Croatia’s coxless four, with the legendary Sinkovic brothers in the stern. They need little introduction and are arguably the two best rowers in the world, with Olympic gold medals in the pair from Paris and Tokyo and the double in Rio. They have now set their sights on the four, and to help them, they have the Lonaric twins, Patrik and Anton. They raced the pair at the 2023 World Rowing Championships, qualifying the boat for Paris in 11^th place. They swapped seats with the Sinkovic’s who had been in the double in 2023, and raced to a 12^th place at the Paris Olympic Games. It’s going to be very interesting to see how this crew performs.

Great Britain are the reigning European champions, but their boat for 2025 is an entirely new lineup. The crew includes two former U23 world champions in Joshua Bowesman-Jones and Jake Wincomb. The rest of the crew comprises Dan Graham and James Vogel. Graham made his senior debut at the final World Rowing Cup of the 2023 season, placing fourth in the four. He went one better at the final World Rowing Cup last season, taking a bronze. Vogel made his senior debut in 2021, making the A-final of the pair at the third World Rowing Cup. He made his second senior appearance last year, racing another A-final but this time in the four. Any GB coxless four will be fast, but this crew will probably develop as the Olympiad progresses.

Romania may well be the crew to beat in Plovdiv. They have kept faith with the same line-up that finished fifth at the Paris Olympics, featuring Stefan Constantin Berariu, Sergiu Vasile Bejan, Andrei Mandrila and Ciprian Tudosa. Berariu and Tudosa won Olympic silver in Tokyo in the four and pair, respectively, and Bejan raced in the eight that missed out on the A-final. Bejan also has World and European titles from the pair in 2022. Mandrila had a busy end to his season last year, racing at the U23 European and World Rowing Championships, collecting two golds at the former

The Netherlands are another nation bringing an experienced quartet to Plovdiv. Stroke of the boat is Olympic champion in the quad, Finn Florijn, and he’s backed up by men’s eight silver medallists, Ralf Rienks at bow and Sander de Graaf at three. The only non-Olympian in the boat is Pieter Van Veen. The 26-year-old has been a member of the senior national squad since 2022 and raced in the single at the 2024 European Rowing Championships, finishing 15^th.

Germany last won a medal in this event in 2019 (bronze); their campaign for 2025 is led by two experienced members of last year’s eight, Wolf-Niclas Schroeder and Max John. They were in the men’s eight that won silver at last year’s European Rowing Championships and placed fourth in Paris. Joining them is international debutant and Boston University student Friedrich Amelingmeyer. The final member of the crew is Rene Schmela. He’s making his first international appearance since the 2021 European Rowing Championships, where he finished tenth in the pair with Anton Braun.

Italy has put together a mix of youth and experience for their coxless four. Occupying the two middle seats in the boat are the experienced Alfonso Scalzone and Giovanni Abagnale. They were both members of the Italian men’s eight that finished ninth at the 2022 World Rowing Championships, whilst they also raced together in the pair at that year’s European Rowing Championships. Abagnale raced in the four that took European silver last year and placed ninth in Paris. The youngsters in the crew are Francesco Pallozzi and Alessandro Gardino. Both are still only 22 and made their senior international debuts at the opening World Rowing Cup of 2024, racing in the second Italian men’s eight. Gardino won gold in the coxed four at the 2023 U23 World Rowing Championships.

Other crews to watch include Ukraine, with the evergreen Sergei Gryn in the three-seat; 2025 marks the 43-year-old’s 24^th season in international rowing.

Also, watch for Serbia with the experienced Milos Vasic and Aleksandar Bedic.

Prediction

Romania in gold, the Netherlands in silver, and Croatia in bronze.