Image Credit: World Rowing
The 2025 World Rowing season presented a rare opportunity for programmes to experiment with crews under minimal pressure for Olympic qualification, and we saw some exciting and unexpected results amid the usual dominance of the big programmes. In 2026, we will likely see the top crews (or those that were already comfortably in qualifying position) stick together, while the less successful crews go back to the drawing board and try to find the perfect crew combination. With three World Rowing Cups on the calendar this year, there will be lots of opportunities to watch these athletes in action.
Romania dominated the women’s sweep events at the 2025 World Rowing Championships, winning gold in the pair and mixed eight and picking up silver in the four and eight. This bodes exceptionally well for their quadrennial and is already a slight step up from Paris, where they won a gold, a silver, and placed fourth in the four. We can expect to see some shuffling of the lineups and the doubling up of events as the Romanians go for gold in every sweep event. For example, women’s pair champions Simona Radis and Maria Magdalena Rusu did not race in the women’s eight in 2025; instead, they raced in the mixed eight. Depending on how Romania prioritises the various events, we may see the lineups change, but expect to see the same all-star athletes on the podium in whichever events they enter.
The Netherlands stamped their mark on the women’s eight event, winning their first-ever gold in the event and unseating perennial powerhouse Romania. The Dutch strategy in 2025 differed significantly from their previous quadrennial, during which they won Paris Olympic gold in both the pair and four events, and didn’t enter an eight at all. Perhaps they will be disappointed with their incredibly decorated women’s four finishing fourth in Shanghai, but will not back down from the challenge of reclaiming dominance in the smaller boats. Like Romania, this programme often switches athletes between sweeping and sculling, so it is hard to predict which athletes will rise, but you can always count on the Dutch to be crews to watch.
The USA won the women’s four, the first World Rowing Championship medal for all of the athletes. The USA should be very pleased with their dominance in this event in 2025, following a medal-less Olympic Games. Azja Czajkowski and Camille Vandermeer were undefeated all season, winning both World Rowing Cup titles before securing the world title. I predict that this four will stay mostly intact for 2026, following in the successful footsteps of the USA men’s four during the Paris cycle. Jessica Thoennes seems to be a pair queen, winning world bronze this year with Holly Drapp, while the eight continues to find itself at the back of the A-final.
Great Britain had a measured start to the quadrennial, with a predictable (that is a compliment!) bronze medal performance in the eight – the depth and technical prowess in their squad make them a consistent threat in the big boats. They tested out the increasingly common doubling-up strategy, with half of the eight also racing to fifth place in the women’s four. Their new pair combination showed great promise, finishing sixth and beating out several crews that were heavily favoured for an A-final. My prediction is that Great Britain will be looking to find a completely separate four, rather than doubling up again in 2026.
Germany had an incredible World Rowing Championships in the women’s eight, sitting in third position for most of the race before getting pipped for bronze by just 0.17 seconds. Germany hasn’t had a women’s eight in the Olympics since 2012, when they were knocked out in the repechage. Keep your eyes on this team for the LA cycle!
As for specific athletes to watch, the standout performance of 2025 for me was Emma Cornelis and Hezekia Peron storming to a shocking silver medal in the pair. Peron was only 20 this summer – this crew has a ton of promise, and it will be very exciting to see what they can achieve in 2026.
I am also looking forward to watching the Italian pair of Alice Codato and Laura Meriano, who will be looking to match their early-season heights (silver at the European Rowing Championships, gold at the Varese World Rowing Cup) after a fairly off-the-pace fourth place at the World Rowing Championships; however, they did manage to pick up silver in the mixed eight.
The New Zealand women’s four picked up a bronze in Lucerne and Shanghai (and another bronze in the mixed eight). Only Alana Sherman is an Olympian, so to place third in an intense field was very impressive, and this crew, including Isla Blake, Juliette Lequeux, and Rebecca Leigh, will likely stick together for 2026 as the premier Kiwi sweep boat.
