Closing out a spectacular season of racing, the World Rowing U19 Championships is the ultimate stage for young, aspiring athletes to battle for the prize that has few equals in the sport: a world title. Furthermore, following a remarkable display of feats at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, perhaps these rowers will be inspired to push that extra step for glory. So with no further ado, here are the crews to watch out for in the junior men’s events.
Junior Men’s Eights
It would be ignorant of me not to open with Great Britain. Surely the clear favourites in this event, with a win at the 2024 Munich International Regatta by three seconds earlier this year (they also finished first and fourth in the men’s fours the previous day). Arriving here as the reigning champions in this event, they will be even more eager to mirror the success of the senior eight’s triumphant gold at the Olympics just finished. With an eight stacked full of athletes from the top programs the country has to offer – including Eton, Shiplake and Henley champions St Paul’s – it looks likely. However, it is not all said and done quite yet, with rivals Germany also putting out a strong lineup. At Munich in May, Germany came fourth and fifth whilst also entering five crews into the event. With some crew changes having been made since then, who knows how fast they are? Yet, this year’s field looks competitive all around; with notable nations like the USA, Canada and France in the mix, anything could happen. Additionally, there is always the possibility of New Zealand causing an upset, with minimal information on their crew available, although my guess is they won’t manage to push the largest players off the top step.
Junior Men’s Quadruple Sculls
Germany appear to enter this regatta as the favourites, with a one-two finish at the Junior International Regatta only four months ago. Their top crew also features one returner from their boat last year, which was also victorious. Since May, their current top quad has been left nearly unchanged, with only one swap. Nevertheless, assuming this swap is beneficial, it will only enlarge the three-second gap they created to the next fastest country, the Czech Republic, who are also back, and doubtlessly looking to overturn the result from May. The Czech Republic also secured a win in the quad category at the recent Coupe de la Jeunesse. Great Britain is also present, and will certainly be looking to improve on fourth place from the last time they raced. With half their boat containing Windsor Boys School BC athletes – the current Henley champions – and with Windsor coach Mark Wilkinson guiding them, this crew has the potential to cannon themselves to the top if they get it right. Those are the three biggest names to watch out for, but worth keeping an eye on include China and Poland, who both featured in the A-final last year. Although we haven’t seen much of them thus far this year, both have serious dark horse potential.
Junior Men’s Coxless Fours
Great Britain, having put their most prized athletes into this boat, will surely be looking to capitalise in this event. Featuring three athletes from St Paul’s School BC, who have just finished the season as both national and Henley Royal Regatta champions, getting the world title here could be the cherry on top. However, they only finished fourth last time, but with a fresh new crew, they should be able to improve. Battling them will be Germany, who came second last year, and have now put together a crew featuring twin brothers Daniel and Sebastian Hopf, both of whom are competing internationally for the second time, and both of whom claimed silver medals the first time around. Therefore, converting that silver to gold will be a priority for them. Current champions Romania are also returning after taking the win last year by nearly four seconds. They have fielded a new crew, but will still be looking to defend the title. Finally, the Czech Republic could be a serious contender for the podium, if not the win, with only two seconds separating them and gold in Munich. If they have managed to step on since then, a good race could be all it takes to snatch the win.
Junior Men’s Coxed Fours
With less than half the entries of the quads, at only six, competition could be intense in this event. The title currently belongs to Italy who will be back to defend it, although with a totally new combination. The field mainly seems to consist of various country’s second boats, although this does not mean it will be any less exciting. Likely to be vying for medals will be Italy, Canada and the USA. Interestingly, the crew from Australia features two twin brothers, Matias and Tomas Moloney, which is a huge achievement for them. With years of experience working together, could the duo put themselves in contention for the win?
Junior Men’s Double Sculls
With twenty entries, this field is certain to be hotly contested. Among the crews jousting for the top, favourites include Poland, Greece and Switzerland. From Poland, the crew appears to be a new combination, however, one of the athletes was in a crew that won their heat at the Munich International Junior Regatta (the event did not go to finals). They are the only country in the event which have achieved that. Alongside them are the Greek double, who finished second last year, and have one returning athlete from that crew. Lastly is Switzerland, who are one of the only crews entered who have competed together before. This combination finished second in their heat in Munich but has the advantage of having racing experience together, which could prove invaluable in the heat of the moment. Moreover, with a bronze medal last year, Switzerland is no stranger to the podium. One last crew who must not be underestimated is Italy, who although are yet to be seen this year, are the reigning victors, and so must be respected.
Junior Men’s Pairs
The crew to watch for here is clear: Germany. With this combination winning in Munich by a comfortable four seconds, taking down a pair from Great Britain featuring two of our top athletes, they will have the target on their backs. In 2023, their German predecessors only managed silver, but this crew will certainly be eyeing up the top step. Against them will be the winners of the B-final at that event, Switzerland, although looking at their times from May it appears they may simply have had a bad heat, as they cruised across the line over 16 seconds ahead of their competition. I’m sure this combo will not make the same mistake twice. Not going quietly though will be Great Britain, with two athletes from titans of the schoolboy scene, St Edwards and Kings College. Although they may have been left out of GB’s premier boats, the four and eight, a medal is still on the table for them. However, Romania are also in the running, and following a remarkably successful Olympics for them, their juniors will definitely be looking to follow suit. Nonetheless, in a boat class such as the pair, experience rowing in your racing combo pays a genuine advantage, so it wouldn’t surprise me to see the pairs with racing experience together performing the best here.
Junior Men’s Single Sculls
Last but not least, the singles: an event certain to be tightly contested. Starting strong we have Greece with sculler Panagiotis Makrygiannis. Makrygiannis took the silver medal in this event last year, and with the only sculler to have beaten him not present this time around, who will be here to stop him now? Perhaps it will be Dominik Syposz from Poland, who took the win at Munich, though notably at an event where Greece wasn’t present. Nevertheless, he took the win there by an impressive ten seconds, an intimidatingly large gap for his competitors. Not to be discounted is Switzerland’s William Mcclean, who took the win in his heat on the second day at Munich, where there was no progression to finals. This was a superb result, especially considering he took the win in the heat by a shocking 33 seconds and posted a time only one second slower than Poland’s Syposz in the other heat. However, there is definite potential for some dark horses in this event, with numerous athletes from South America and Asia present who we have not yet seen race on the international stage. Therefore, an upset could be on the cards.
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