So here it is, the big one, the one all rowers want to race at, and for some, the culmination of years of training and dedication: it’s the Olympic Games. Finally, after months of uncertainty, it looks like the Games will happen. One thing’s for sure, these Games will be unlike any other in history. The venue is the Sea Forest Waterway, specially built for the Games and inaugurated in 2019. As the name suggests, it’s a coastal venue and has had its fair share of issues, from strong winds to oysters growing on the buoys. But when conditions are right, it’s a fantastic course.
As always, with my previews, I’ve tried to give a rundown of the form, experience and prospects of those competing. I hope that readers find this a valuable and exciting guide to those racing in Tokyo. If you have enjoyed what I write, perhaps you’d consider buying me a coffee via my Ko-Fi page https://ko-fi.com/X8X64ORYM
Current Standings:
Reigning Champions: Germany (Philipp Werde, Lauritz Schoof, Karl Schultze, Hans Gruhne)
Rio Silver medal: Australia (Karsten Fosterling, Alex Belonogoff, Cameron Girdlestone. James McRae)
Rio bronze medal: Estonia (Andrei Jamsa, Allar Raja, Tonu Endrekson, Kaspar Taimsoo)
Australia: Jack Cleary (25), Caleb Antill (25), Cameron Girdlestone (33), Luke Letcher (27)
The Aussies have medalled in this event at the last two Olympics and qualified for Tokyo with 4th place in Linz. But, the selectors have made wholesale changes to the 2019 crew, with only Cameron Girdlestone remaining. He was also in the crew that won silver at the Rio Olympics. Girdlestone raced as a lightweight on the U23 team in 2007 but didn’t make his senior debut until seven years later, competing in the quad that finished 15th at the World Championships. He raced in the quad for the remainder of the Rio Olympiad, winning a world championship silver medal in 2015. After the Olympic silver medal in Rio, he took a break from rowing but returned to the quad in 2019 and helped secure boat qualification. Caleb Antil was U23 World Champion in 2016 and was a member of the 2018 silver medalling winning quad. He started the 2019 season in the quad, but for the World Championships, he moved into the M2X, but a 12th place finish meant they missed qualification for Tokyo. Cleary (born on the same day as Antil) is making his senior debut in Tokyo. He raced in the Australian U23 BM4+ in 2015 and 2016 winning a bronze medal. The fourth member of the crew is Luke Letcher. He also came up through the Aussie Junior and U23 national teams, winning gold in the BM4X with Antil in 2016. 17th in the M2X in 2017 was followed by 19th in the M1X in 2018.
Tokyo prospects: Tough to call; the Australians are a reasonably inexperienced unit, and it’s tough to see them mounting a challenge for the medals given the quality of the field. I predict 8th or 9th.
China: Xudi Yi (27), Ha Zang (26), Dang Liu (31), Quan Zhang (30)
Tokyo will be the first time China has qualified for the M4X since finishing in last place at the 2000 Olympics. They secured their spot with 6th place at the 2019 World Championships (only the 2nd time a Chinese M4X had reached a World Championship A-Final). It is, perhaps, a mark of the impact Sir Steve Redgrave has had since becoming High-Performance Director of the Chinese Rowing Federation in 2018. Ha Zang has a remarkable record of having made his senior international debut before his junior one. He raced in the M2X at the Eton World Cup in 2013 before racing at the Junior World Championships later that summer, picking up a bronze medal in the JM4X. His next appearance was at the Final Olympic Qualifying Regatta for the Rio Games, where he failed to progress beyond the repechage in the M2X. Xudi Yi started his international career in 2017 racing in the M4X that finished 13th at the World Championships. He raced in various boats during the 2018 and 2019 seasons, switching between the M8, M4-, M2X before ending back in the M4X for the 2019 World Championships. Dang Liu has spent most of his international career racing in the M4X. He competed in this boat class at the 2014 and 2015 World Championships, delivering China’s best-ever finish of 4th in 2014. He didn’t race internationally again until 2019, when the quad finished 6th. Quan Zhang is the most experienced crew member, having debuted in 2010 and has raced at 6 World Championships. Like Liu, Zhang has raced almost exclusively in the M4X and was in the boat that narrowly missed qualifying for Rio in 2016. So far in 2021, the Chinese have raced at the Lucerne World Cup, where they finished 5th.
Tokyo prospects: Unlikely to make the A-Final – will be battling to avoid last place.
Estonia: Kaspar Taimsoo (34), Allar Raja (38), Tonu Endrekson (42), Juri-Mikk Udam (27)
Tokyo will bring the total number of Olympic appearances for the Estonian crew to 14. Tonu Endrekson will be making his 5th Olympic appearance and has a bronze and silver medal to his credit. He’s been a real fixture on the international rowing scene for the last 20 years. He has five World Championship medals with his two Olympic and four European Championship medals (including three European golds). Tokyo will be Kaspar Taimsoo’s 4th Olympic Games; he started his senior career in 2007 and has a bronze from the quad in Rio. He’s also got multiple World and European Championship medals. Allar Raja will also be making his 4th Olympic appearance in Tokyo. He was another member of the bronze medal quad in Rio and had been racing internationally for 17 years. By comparison, Juri-Mikk Udam is a novice; Tokyo will be his first Olympic experience. He raced in the M2X from 2017-2019 with the best result of 8th at the 2019 Europeans. He was selected for the quad for the 2020 Europeans placing 4th and then in 2021 won his first senior international medal with a bronze medal at the Europeans. The crew then followed this up with gold at the Zagreb World Cup and qualified the boat by winning the Final Olympic Qualifying Regatta.
Tokyo prospects: The most experienced crew in the event, I think they are more than capable of reaching the A-Final, but I don’t think they will be among the medals. The tail-end of the A-Final or the top of the B-Final.
Germany: Max Appel (25), Hans Gruhne (32), Karl Schulze (33), Tim Ole Naske (25)
Germany is the defending Olympic champion, and both Gruhne and Schulze are back to defend their title. Tokyo will be Gruhne’s 3rd Olympics in the M4X. As well as gold in Rio, he raced in the quad in Beijing just ten days after his 20th birthday reaching the A-Final. Schulze won U23 bronze in the BM2X back in 2008 (just behind a couple of Croatians called Sinkovic….I wonder what happened to them ;) ). He joined the quad in 2011, winning silver at the World Championships and then gold at the London Olympics. The German quad won World Championship medals throughout the Rio Olympiad, including gold in 2015. Appel won U23 gold in 2016 and joined the quad a year later. Ole Naske is a two-time JM1X World Champion, a Youth Olympic Champion and a two-time U23 World Champion; it wasn’t until he made his senior debut at the 2nd World Cup of 206 that he lost an international race! He raced in the M1X at the 2017 World Championships, but with the emergence of Ollie Zeidler, Ole Naske’s single scull ambitions ground to a halt. In 2019 he moved into the M2X, qualifying the boat with 10th place. In 2020 he was brought into the quad, reaching the A-Final. So far in 2021, the German’s have raced at all three World Cups winning bronze medals in both Zagreb and Sabaudia.
Tokyo prospects: I can’t help feeling this German crew should be much better than they actually are. They have won the last two Olympic titles and have members of both those crews onboard. But, for some reason, this boat has yet to race to its potential. Unless they’ve made significant improvements since the last World Cup, they won’t make it a hattrick of titles and may even struggle to make the A-Final.
Great Britain: Harry Leask (25), Angus Groom (29), Tom Barras (27), Jack Beaumont (27)
The British M4X has been a frustrating boat to watch at times; they always seem to be there or thereabouts without ever really pushing for the top honours. But, they are a very talented boat and have the ability to press for major honours. Jack Beaumont and Angus Groom have been racing together since they were junior internationals, and in 2014 they won bronze in the BM2X at the U23 World Championships. They went on to race together in the M4X at the Rio Olympics, finishing 5th. 2017 was the GB Quads best season, winning medals at all three World Cups and silver at the World Championships. In 2018 the two of them moved back into the double, placing 4th at the World Championships before returning to the quad for 2019 and qualifying the boat with an 8th place (which was the worst result at a World Championships for the British since 2010). After the relative disappointment of 2019, Harry Leask and Tom Barras were brought into the crew. Leask raced on the U23 team from 2015 to 2017, and then in 2018, he produced an outstanding performance to finish 4th in the M1X at the World Championships. Tom Barras is another athlete who made a dramatic appearance in his first senior year in 2017 when he took bronze in the M1X at the World Championships. He moved into the quad for 2018 before reverting to the single in 2019 to qualify for Tokyo; illness hampered his performance in Linz. His 14th place was bitterly disappointing and not representative of his true speed. But, for 2021, he’s back in the quad. 5th at the 2021 Europeans was a slightly below-par performance, but bronze in Lucerne was much more representative of their potential.
Tokyo prospects: This crew can challenge for the medals, not sure they will be quite fast enough for the top honours, but bronze or silver is not out of the question.
Italy: Simone Venier (36), Andrea Panizza (22), Luca Rambaldi (26) Giacoma Gentili (24)
Italy has won this event twice, the last being in Sydney in 2000. Simone Venier will be heading to his 4th Olympics, his 2nd in the M4X. He won silver in the quad in 2008 and then raced in the M4- in London, placing 8th and the M8 in 2016. He raced in the M2X at the 2019 World Championships, but a 17th place met, they failed to qualify for Tokyo. Luca Rambaldi started his senior career in 2013 and won European bronze in the M4X in 2014. In 2017 he raced in the M2X, won the European Championships, and took bronze at the World Championships. In 2017. Gentili was JM1X World Champion in 2015 and made his Senior World Champion the same year. He raced in the m4X with Rambaldi in 2016 but failed to qualify for Rio. Panizza made his senior debut in 2017, joining Gentili in the quad that finished 12th at the World Championships. In 2018, Gentili, Panizza and Rambaldi, along with Filippo Mondelli, won the M4X World title (Italy’s first in 20 years). This combination followed up their 2018 win with a bronze medal in 2019. At the start of this season, Mondelli was replaced by the veteran Venier, and the Italians won their 2nd European title (defeating the world champion the Netherlands in the process). They also raced at the 2nd and 3rd World Cups this season, winning a silver and gold.
Tokyo prospects: Very, very strong medal contenders but will need other crews to slip up to secure the top prize.
The Netherlands: Abe Wiersma (26), Dirk Uittenbogaard (31), Tone Wieten (27), Koen Metsemakers (29)
The Netherlands M4X were World Champions in 2019, the first time they’d taken the title in 30 years, and for many people, they were the crew of the championships. Uittenbogaard is the most experienced crew member, with 2021 marking his 10th season on the senior team. He raced in the quad throughout 2013 and then the M2X in 2014. He won his first senior medal in 2015, taking bronze in the M8 and qualifying for the Rio Olympics, winning another bronze medal. Wiersma won two U23 World Championship medals in 2015 and 2016. In 2017 he raced in the quad with Koen Metsemakers (along with Freek Robbers and Amos Keijser), and their 4th place was the best result for a NED M4x since 2001. For his part, Metsemakers debuted in 2016 and has raced in the quad since 2017. Wieten raced at the U23’s in 2013 and 2014 and was a senior in the M8 from 2015 to 2017, winning a bronze medal at the Rio Olympics. After that, he raced in the M4- in 2018 in a crew that missed the World Championships podium. In 2019 the crew, as it stands for Tokyo, came together and won their first European title. They successfully defended their title in 2020, but in 2021, they suffered a shock defeat to the Italians at the Europeans. But, since then, regular service has been resumed, and the crew won gold at the Lucerne World Cup (pushing the Italians into 2nd).
Tokyo prospects: my favourites for gold. I can’t see anyone preventing them from winning their first-ever M4X Olympic gold.
Norway: Martin Helseth (26), Olaf Tufte (45), Jan Helvig (25), Erik Solbakken (26)
Tokyo will be Olaf Tufte’s SEVENTH Olympic Games… a remarkable record. He first raced internationally as a junior back in 1994 (before his crew were born). There is nothing he hasn’t achieved in the sport – he has two Olympic golds, a silver and bronze, and 6 World Championship medals (including two gold).
Helseth made his senior debut whilst still a U23. He’s spent his entire senior career racing in the M4X. He and Solbakken won U23 silver in the BM2X in 2016, and Solbakken has also spent most of his senior racing career in the quad (with the exception of a foray into the M2X in 2018). Helvig and Helseth raced together in the BM2X, winning a silver medal at the U23 World Championships. Like Solbakken and Helseth, Helvig has spent most of his senior career racing in the M4X. 7th at the 2019 World Championships was enough to secure their spot for Tokyo. Their performances since 2019 have been a little underwhelming. 12th at the 2021 Europeans was followed by 6th at the Zagreb World Cup. But, between the 1st and 3rd World Cups, the Norwegians tweaked the seating order of the crew, moving Tufte back from stroke to the 2-seat, and this change has transformed the crew. In Sabaudia, they were much more competitive, winning a silver medal behind the Italians (Norway’s best performance since winning silver at the 1988 Olympics).
Tokyo prospects: A medal is probably beyond this crew, but an A-Final appearance will be a great swansong for the legendary Tufte.
Poland: Dominik Czaja (25), Wiktor Chabel (35), Szymon Posnik (28), Fabian Baranski (22)
Poland is one of the most consistent performers in the event. They have only missed the A-Final once for the entire Olympiad; they also the only nation to have raced at every event since the 2nd World Cup of 2014. Poland has one Olympic victory to their name, in Beijing 2008. They also won the World title from 2005-2009. Wiktor Chabel is the most experienced member of the crew. He made his debut in 2007 and, at his first World Championships in 2009, finished 9th in the M2X. The double missed qualification for the London Olympics, and after taking a break from international racing, Chabel returned in 2015 racing in the quad. He raced in this boat in Rio, placing 4th. Czaja raced as a junior international in 2012 and 2013 and made his senior debut in 2014. He finished 14th in the M2X at the 2015 Worlds. In 2017 he joined Chabel in the quad (with Dariusz Radosz and Adam Wicenciak), winning a silver medal at the European Championships and making the A-final at the Worlds. Posnik was on the U23 team in 2014 and 2015 and then made his senior debut in 2018. Baranski is the newest member of the crew and U23 medallist in 2018; he made his senior debut in 2019, winning gold in the M2X at the European Championships and then World Championship silver in the quad with Czaja, Chabel and Posnik. The poles form in the quad has just tailed off ever so slightly since 2019. 4th at the Europeans this season was followed by silver in Zagreb (losing to the Estonians), and then they missed the podium at both the 2nd and 3rd World Cups.
Tokyo prospects: if the Games had been last year, I would’ve said the Poles were a nailed-on medal contender, but the delay seems to have affected the Poles, and now I predict they will be battling to make the A-Final, and I’m not sure they will…7th for me.
Russian Olympic Committee: Nikita Morgachev (40), Artem Kosov (34), Nikolay Pimenov (24), Pavel Sorin (26)
Russia last won an Olympic medal in this event back when they were still the Soviet Union, and they later reached the A-Final at a World Championships in 2011. They reached the Olympic B-Finals in 2008 and 2012 and qualified the boat for Rio. This year they secured their spot with 2nd at the Final Olympic Qualifying Regatta, just 0.05 seconds behind Estonia. Morgachev is the 3rd 40+ athlete in the event; he first made his senior international debut in the last century finishing 16th at the 1999 World Championships. He rowed in the quad at both the Beijing and London Olympics and qualified the boat for Rio but were disqualified when one of the crews (Sergey Fedorovstev) was banned for doping. Instead, Morgachev (one of the few Russian athletes allowed to compete in Rio) moved into the M4 and raced to a 10th place in Rio. After racing in the M8 in 2017, he moved back into the M4- for 2019, but 17th meant they were well short of qualifying. Kosov raced in the quad in 2009 and 2010, and in 2012 unsuccessfully tried to qualify the M1X for the London Olympics. Like Morgachev, he was a member of the quad that was disqualified in 2016 and raced in the M4- in Rio. Sorin made his senior World Championship debut whilst still a teenager in 2014, finishing 22nd in the M2X. He then raced in the M4X in 2015, which placed 1st in the C-Final. He and Pimenov won silver in the BM4X at the U23 World Championships in 2017 and race the senior Worlds that year. Pimenov is one of the most famous names in world rowing, son and nephew of the famous Pimenov brothers. He made his senior debut in 2017 and has been a member of the quad throughout his senior career (apart from a brief foray in the single at this year’s Europeans.
Edit: It was announced on July 7th that both morgachev and Sorin has tested positive for Meldonium – which since 2016 has been a banned substance. The Russian Olympic Committee President, Stanislav Pozdnyakov, announced that the two rowers had been provisionally suspended and replaced in the quad (although the names of the replacements have not yet been announced). This will be the 2nd Olympics in a row that a Russian M4X has had members banned for doping violations and casts a long shadow over the whole Russian rowing team.
Tokyo prospects: 2nd at the FOQR makes the Russian entry the lowest-ranked boat in the event. But they got close to the Estonians, which shows they have good speed. But, in such an extreme event, they are likely to be battling to avoid the last place.
Conclusions & Predictions:
Medal Picks: I can’t see anyone beating the Netherlands, but the battle for silver and bronze will be good. Italy is the form crew at the moment, but both GB and Poland will hunt for the bronze…..I’m picking GB.
Cover image: British Rowing / Naomi Baker
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