Image Credit: World Rowing
2023 Champions: Roman Polianskyi (Ukraine)
Entries: 12
This is a mouthwatering field. Five scullers from last year’s Paralympic final are journeying to race in Shanghai, including all three medallists: Ben Pritchard, Roman Polianski, and Erik Horrie.
Pritchard’s gold at Stade nautique de Vaires-sur-Marne felt like a real coming-of-age moment. The Welsh dragon roared like never before, cementing his name in the history books as one of the great PR1 single scullers. The key turning point was World Rowing Cup III last season; since then, he’s been unstoppable. It was also significant because it ended Polianski’s Paralympic dominance. The Ukrainian is a legend of the sport. The two-time Paralympic Champion had to settle for second place last year, though, 11 seconds down on the proud Welshman.
Fast forward to this new chapter, and at the beginning of this fresh Paralympic cycle, there is much to unpick.
We, of course, start with Pritchard. The one to beat, the one with the target on his back. We haven’t seen much of him this season, but we have witnessed the gold standard. His only outing was the European Rowing Championships in Plovdiv, where he stormed to victory and set a new World Best Time in the process. For many, there can often be a hangover period after something like the Paralympics, but it certainly doesn’t seem to be the case. The rest of the European Rowing Championships were much like the final in Paris last year, with Polianski finishing 11 seconds back on Pritchard.
The Euros kicked off the season, which meant it was also the first time Giacomo Perini returned to the water after having his Paralympic bronze medal taken away from him. The Italian was disqualified and lost his bronze medal after he was found with a mobile phone in his boat during the final last summer. Perini always maintained it was an oversight and never used it to communicate, so the European Rowing Championships were his first opportunity to set the record straight and right the wrongs of last year. He left Bulgaria in a good position, four seconds back on Polianski.
Wild card doesn’t seem like the correct phrase to use, and it doesn’t do the stalwart justice, but it feels like this could be the moment that Erik Horrie steps out of the shadows of his rivals. Bronze at last year’s Paralympics followed three consecutive silver medals. So far this season, he’s won both of the World Rowing Cups, most significantly winning in Varese by 13 seconds over Perini. The field had just three scullers in Lucerne, but the Australian put more than 30 seconds into Alexis Sanchez, who placed fifth in Paris. Horrie has finished off the podium at the last few World Rowing Championships, but early-season form suggests that this could be the year that bucks that trend.
Our top four seem to be fairly set in stone: Pritchard, Poliankski, and Horrie, with Perini desperate for redemption and to prove that he was worthy of that bronze medal. With Israel’s Shmuel Daniel absent, it’s likely we’ll see a showdown between Mexico’s Michel Munoz Malagon and Germany’s Marcus Klemp for the final spot in the race for medals.
The difficulty is that this year, there is a massive gap between the racing in Europe at the World Rowing Cups and the European Rowing Championships. There is a lot of time to step on and see improvements across the board, so this year’s World Rowing Championships is set to be a right bobby dazzler.
Prediction
Ben Pritchard to win his first World Rowing Championships ahead of Eric Horrie, who wins silver, with the great Roman Polianski rounding out the podium.
