Photo Courtesy of US Rowing

By Ian O’Riley ’24

THE ROUNDUP

The United States women’s four-person boat placed first in the grand final on Aug. 6 at the Junior World Rowing Championships in Paris, France giving the U.S. two consecutive medals in the event.

No other U.S. boats medaled this year. The women’s eight-person, which placed first last year, missed a medal by only a tenth of a second and was just over two-tenths of a second from first place. 

The next highest placement was the men’s four-person in fifth place just behind the Italian crew. The women’s quad, also in fifth place, was the only other boat to make a grand final.

Rowers underwent a competitive selection process to be able to compete for the U.S. team. Applicants submitted racing profiles, regatta placements and raced throughout the summer to acquire a spot. 

There were 53 rowers selected to race at the world championships in Paris from Aug. 2-6. All American rowers raced in one of the top three finals each consisting of 5 other crews at the championship, which had some events representing more than 30 countries and teams.