With increasing numbers of South Australians now rowing at the National Training Centre, it leaves plenty of opportunities for local rowers to make their mark. This is particularly true in the open men’s pair at the 2026 South Australian Rowing Championships, where some of the state’s best young rowers will battle it out for the South Australian title.
Adelaide University
Adelaide University’s traditional black and white has a new look this season, with a predominantly black zootie, two white chevrons and pink edges celebrating 50 years of women’s rowing at the club. It’s a fantastic-looking zootie, and there’s every chance there’ll be three pairs of them on the podium in this event.
South Australian teammates James Williams and Henry Belcher might well be favourites. Both raced in the South Australian youth eight at last year’s interstate regatta, with Belcher backing up in the King’s Cup less than an hour later. Both also raced in Adelaide University’s U21 eight, finishing fifth behind some strong high-performance fields. Belcher also took home gold for South Australia in the four and eight at last year’s Oceania Championships and will want to keep his name in selectors’ minds for the King’s Cup.
Another strong crew is Callum Deckers and Max Henry. Henry was another South Australian representative in 2025, racing for the Noel F Wilkinson Trophy. A scratching at the January Regatta meant they missed the chance for some race practice, although Henry knows how to win after golds in the four and eight at the Oceania Championships. The whisper is he’s been training the house down as well, leaving this pair one to watch.
Keep your eye out for the lightweight pairing of Kyle Miller and Daniel Wiersema, too. They won silver at the 2025 Australian Rowing Championships in the U23 lightweight pair, missing gold by less than a second. Miller rowed bow seat for South Australia in the Penrith Cup last year, while Wiersema won this event with Beacher Ross at the Murray Bridge and Riverland regattas late last year.
The final Adelaide University crew for this event is Izac Nilsen and Mitchell Moore. The two teamed up with Miller and Wiersema at the January Regatta to win the four by almost 30 seconds. Nilsen also won the second-grade pair with Wiersema at last year’s Riverland Regatta, beating three St Peter’s College crews for the win.
Christian Brothers
The only school competitors in this event are Christian Brothers’ Alex Evans and Luca Sparapani. They’ll have a tough ask against a talented field, with their last race being an eighth place in the schoolboy eight at the most recent School Premiership regatta.
Torrens
For Torrens’ Finn Redman and Finn Castrique, the equation is simple – try to stop an Adelaide University trifecta. Redman made the U19 singles A-final at last year’s Australian Rowing Championships for Adelaide High, competed for Adelaide University in the U21 eight, and raced for South Australia in the Noel F Wilkinson Trophy. This pair finished second behind Wiersema and Beacher Ross at December’s Riverland Regatta and will be in contention for a podium placing.
Our prediction
The tipping octopus still wasn’t available to help us out with this one, so we asked a South Australian local what they thought instead. They reckon it’ll be a good race but declined to give a winner, so we’re going to go for an Adelaide University 1-2-3: James Williams and Henry Belcher beating Kyle Miller and Daniel Wiersema, with Callum Decker and Max Henry third.
