It’s time for one last run down the course, and it’s the big one: the New Zealand Rowing Championships 2025. Held on the glistening blue waters of Lake Ruataniwha in Twizel, don’t let the beauty fool you; a battle is about to take place. Here, over the next few days, national titles will be determined, and the racing is sure to be intense. In the women’s senior quad event, Waikato Rowing Club has been unstoppable so far this season, but they are yet to face the might of Dunstan Rowing Club.
Waikato Rowing Club
Waikato have established themselves as the ones to watch for when looking at rowing in the North Island and should be minded, if not feared. At the recent North Island Club Championships, this crew controlled the race with ease, taking gold by a whole ten seconds over North Shore Rowing Club. Headed up by Emily Gordon, the only returner from last year’s winning lineup, who has also represented NZ at the Trans-Tasman Regatta. She is backed up by the might of Amelia Barrell, a previous New Zealand U23 representative, along with Charlize Tutbury, who also claimed gold in the senior singles at the North Island Champs, and Jenna-Lee Markgraaf, also a New Zealand representative at the Trans-Tasman Regatta in 2024. Together, they make a fearsome combination; they haven’t yet let another crew finish even remotely close to them. The only question now is whether anyone from the South Island can challenge them.
Dunstan Rowing Club
Dunstan has been a serious threat for some years now at both men’s and women’s events, and it will be no different here. At Nationals last season, they finished second, only missing out to a strong contingent from Waikato. This time around, they’ll be eager to turn the tables. At the South Island Championships earlier this month, they again finished second in the premier quad event (unfortunately, there was no senior event), falling short by less than a second to Canterbury, who won’t be present here due to ineligibility. So, on the grandest stage of the season, could they finally claim the top step? As expected, the crew is stacked full of talent, featuring Emma Spittle, a U19 who has previously represented the South Island as a junior at North vs South; she is backed up by Olivia Key, the only returner from last year’s lineup. In the second half of the crew is Olivia Piebenga, another highly accomplished athlete, and Millie Scott, who represented NZ at the Trans-Tasman Universities Test Series in Brisbane last July. At the South Island Championships, when this crew split into doubles, they finished first and second, highlighting just how few can challenge them currently. However, will it be enough to challenge Waikato?
Cure Boating Club
This lineup from Cure has been biting at the heels of Dunstan and Canterbury all season, finishing third by only a couple of seconds on multiple occasions. Two crew members, Mila Graham and Messina Su’a, won bronze in the senior quad at the New Zealand Nationals last year, racing for Aramoho Whanganui. Now it appears they may be back to try and further improve on that already impressive result. Supporting them will be Sasha Robinson and Madison Neale, who, as a double, won the premier doubles at the Canterbury Championships. At the South Island Championships, this crew combined with the majority of the crew from Dunstan into a premier eight, which took the win, though Avon’s top eight was not present, being overcome by injury and sickness. Still, this exemplifies how talented this crew is across various boat classes. Assuming they are entered here, with a weakened Canterbury, they could be on to take a medal, if not more.
Prediction
It is just a little too difficult to look beyond Waikato, with them being the current title holders and almost completely unchallenged in the North Island this year. It would certainly not be impossible for Dunstan to overthrow them, and the race for gold will definitely be between these two crews, but I just don’t see it happening.
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