Now the dust has settled from the Tokyo Olympics; it’s time for the Paralympians to take centre stage. Some incredible athletes, with some incredible and inspiring stories. Here’s a run-down of those taking part.
PR1 M1X
Rio Champion: Roman Polianskyi (Ukraine)
Rio silver medallist: Erik Horrie (Australia)
Rio bronze medallist: Tom Aggar (Great Britain)
Australia: Erik Horrie (41)
Horrie is one of the most experienced athletes in the field. The five-time World Champion will compete at his 3rd Paralympics and has two silver medals. He took up rowing in 2011, having previously been a member of the Australian Wheelchair Basketball squad, narrowly missing out on selection for the 2008 Paralympic team. He won world championship bronze in his first season and followed that with silver at the London Paralympics. He took his first World title in 2013 and went unbeaten until the 3rd World Cup of 2016. A 2nd Paralympic silver followed in Rio, and he won his 4th and 5th World titles in 2017 and 2018 (breaking his own World Best Time in the process). 2019 was a less successful season; a bronze followed silver at the 2nd World Cup at the World Championships, his worst result since 2011.
He will be one of the hot favourites for the gold.
Tokyo prospects: It’ll be a major surprise if Horrie doesn’t make the podium, and he’ll be desperate to upgrade his silver from the last two Paralympics up to gold.
Brazil: Rene Campos Pereira (41)
The Brazilian made his international debut in 2015, finishing 7th at the World Championships. He competed in the 2016 Paralympics, and on his home water, made the A-Final finishing 6th overall. A graduate from Bahia School of Medicine, he won the South American Championships in 2018 and has made the A-final at the World Championships in 2017, 2018 and 2019.
Tokyo prospects: In a hugely competitive field, he will do well to reach the A-Final, but could well repeat his result from Rio.
Spain: Javier Reja Munoz (47)
Reja Munoz is a former international para-canoeist and competed in the KL2 category at the Rio Paralympics and won bronze at the 2017 ICF World Sprint Championships. He transferred to rowing in 2020 and secured the sole qualifying spot for Tokyo at the 2021 European Paralympic Qualification Regatta. He went on to race at the 2021 European Championships making the A-Final.
Tokyo prospects: May struggle to make the A-Final. But should be towards the front end of the B-Final.
Great Britain: Ben Pritchard (29)
The youngest athlete in the field, Pritchard, is a former triathlete who was paralysed in 2016 following a cycling accident. He started rowing on the ergo as part of his rehabilitation at Stoke Mandeville Hospital. He took to the sport immediately and joined the GB Para-Rowing squad in 2017. He won medals in his first international season in 2019, taking bronze at Gavirate Regatta and the 2nd World Cup. At the 2019 World Championships, he just missed out on a podium finish taking 4th overall. This season he won his first international medal-winning silver at the European Championships.
Tokyo prospects: A strong contender for a medal, not sure he’ll be quite capable of gold but will be in the battle for the silver.
Germany: Marcus Klemp (39)
Klemp secured his place in Tokyo with victory at the Final Paralympic Qualifying regatta in Gavirate. He raced in the Para Mixed 4+ from 2002-2009, including a 4th place at the Beijing Paralympics and a World Championship title in 2007. He switched to the Mixed 2X with Sylvia Pille-Steppat in 2013, winning a bronze medal in 2014. In 2019 he raced with Amalia Sedlmayr, taking 9th. He moved into the single in 2020, winning bronze at the European Championships, and repeated that medal in 2021.
Tokyo prospects: Another solid A-Final prospect.
Israel: Shmuel Daniel (36)
Israel has a strong tradition in Para-rowing. Daniel started his career in 2017, finishing in the C-Final in 2017 and 2018. He had stronger performances in 2019, taking 4th at the 3rd World Cup and then reached the A-Final at the World Championships. Finally, he competed at the 2021 European Championships making the A-Final and missed the podium.
Tokyo prospects: An A-final would be a significant achievement, although more likely to be in the top half of the B-Final.
Mexico: Michel Munoz Malagon (35)
Munoz Malagon secured his spot in Tokyo after finishing 2nd at the Americas Qualifying Regatta. Argentina won the event, but as they won both the men’s and women’s events, only one could go forward to Tokyo, and the Argentinians picked the PR1W1X. As with so many para-athletes, he’s overcome significant challenges to be able to compete at the highest levels in sport. A former national powerlifting champion and is the first Latin American athlete without lower limbs to compete in an Ironman competition and has also is only the 2nd person without legs to compete in a Spartan Race. He switched to rowing at the end of 2018 and made his debut at the World Championships in 2019, finishing 19th.
Tokyo prospects: One of the toughest athletes in a field of extraordinarily tough men, unlikely to make the A-final but will be fighting for 9th-12th.
Nigeria: Ijomah Okoroafor (39)
Okoroafor secured Nigeria’s sole spot at the Paralympics with victory at the African Rowing Championships held in Tunisia back in October 2019. He made his FISA international debut in 2018, racing at the 2018 World Championships, finishing 12th. He followed that up with 12th at the 2nd World Cup of 2019, but he missed the World Championships that year.
Tokyo prospects: another athlete that will be battling for a mid-B-Final placing.
Russian Paralympic Committee: Aleksey Chuvashev (35)
Chuvashev is one of the most experienced competitors in the field and already has one Paralympic medal to his name after taking bronze in the ASM1X at the London Games in 2012. He’s been competing internationally since 2010 and has won a medal at every World Championships since 2011, with the exception of 4th place in 2015. He missed the Rio Paralympics but in 2019 took silver behind Ukraine. He backed this up with another silver medal at the 2020 European Championships, again losing out on the gold to Ukraine.
Tokyo prospects: a hot favourite for a medal, the question is, can he finally get the better of Ukraine and get the gold?
Sri Lanka: Priyamal Jayakodi (34)
Sri Lanka started their Para-rowing team in 2013 and first competed internationally at the 2015 Asian Championships. Jayakodi is a Staff Sergeant in the Sri Lankan Special Forces who was injured whilst on active duty. He made his senior international debut in 2018, finishing in the C-Final at the World Championships. In 2019 he won silver at the Asian Para Championships and went on to secure a spot at the Paralympics with victory at the Asia Oceania Paralympic Qualifying Regatta in April. He will become Sri Lanka’s first-ever rowing Paralympian.
Tokyo prospects: Likely to be fighting for 10th – 12th
Ukraine: Roman Polianskyi (34)
Polianskyi is the reigning Paralympic and World Champion. He initially competed in Para-canoeing but switched to rowing after canoeing was omitted from the Paralympic programme in Rio. He competed at the 2015 and 2016 World Cups winning silver in 2016. He set a new World Best Time in the Rio final and at the 2017 and 2018 World Championships finished runner-up to Horrie of Australia. The 2018 World Championship final saw one of the closest ever finishes of a para-rowing single sculls race when Polianskyi finished just 4/10th behind Horrie. He got his revenge in 2019, winning his first World Championships title and setting a new World Best Time by over 4 seconds.
Tokyo Prospects: the 2016 champion will start as the favourite to retain his title, but it could be another cracking race.
USA: Blake Haxton (30)
A talented High School rower, Haxton lost both his legs following complications due to necrotising fasciitis. After graduating with a degree in law from Ohio State University, he returned to rowing and in 2014 made the US para-rowing team. He reached the A-final in his first season and just missed out on a medal at the Rio Paralympic Games. He made the A-Finals at both the 2017 and 2018 World Championships, just missing out on a medal again. In 2019 he slipped back into the B-Final, but won that in convincing style and also secured the spot at his 2nd Paralympic Games.
Tokyo prospects: A solid A-Final performer, the question is, can he go at least one better than in Rio and make the podium?
My picks…..should be yet another epic battle between Erik Horrie of Australia and Roman Polianskyi of Ukraine, along with the likes of Pritchard of Great Britain, Haxton of the USA and Chuvashev of the RPC. I think Horrie will take the gold just ahead of the Ukrainian, with Pritchard grabbing bronze for GB.
PR1 W1X
Rio Champion: Rachel Morris (Great Britain)
Rio Silver medallist: Lili Wang (China)
Rio Bronze medallist: Moran Samuel (Israel)
Argentina: Brenda Sardon (28)
Sardon gained her place in Tokyo after winning America’s Qualifying Regatta. Originally a para-canoeist, she raced at the 2013 World Championships and won gold at the 2015 South American Championships. In 2018 she switched to rowing and in 2019 competed at the World Rowing Championships, finishing a creditable 9th. She says of rowing that “nothing prevents me from getting from one point to another and that is an unbeatable feeling”.
Tokyo prospects: Unlikely to make the A-Final, but capable of 8th or 9th.
Belarus: Liudmila Vauchok (40)
A former national champion middle-distance runner, Vauchok suffered an accident in 2001 that saw her confined to a wheelchair. However, she has excelled across a number of sporting disciplines and is a former national arm-wrestling champion. She has also competed at both the summer and winter Paralympics, winning gold and three silvers in cross-country skiing at the Turin Winter Paralympics in 2006 and another gold in Vancouver in 2010. Tokyo will be her 4th summer Paralympic Games, and she already has silver and bronze to her credit from Beijing and London. She just missed the medals in Rio, finishing 5th. She also has World Championship medals in 2007, 2009 and 2014. 2019 saw her miss out on an A-Final place for the first time in her career-ending up 8th. She just missed out on a podium at the 2020 European’s and gained her spot in Tokyo with a convincing win at the European Qualifying Regatta. She also raced at the 2021 Europeans, placing 6th.
Tokyo prospects: perhaps not quite the force she once was, but still a strong contender for an A-Final place and an outside chance of another Paralympic medal to add to her collection.
Brazil: Claudia Sabino (44)
Sabino is one of a select band of para-rowers to have competed at every Paralympic Games since rowing was introduced in 2008. She made her international debut in 2007, winning her first gold medal at the Adaptive World Championships. She’s made the A-Final at the last three Paralympics and has medals from both the 2010 Adaptive Championships and the 2013 World Championships. She didn’t race at any of the World Championships after Rio but returned to the sport for 2021 and qualified for Tokyo with a win at the Final Paralympic Qualifying Regatta in Gavirate.
Tokyo prospects: A strong A-Final contender with an outside chance of a medal.
France: Nathalie Benoit (41)
Benoit started her international para-rowing career in 2009, picking up a silver medal at the Adaptive World Championships in her first season. She followed that up in 2010 with her first Adaptive World Championship title and then another silver at the 2011 World Championships. She raced in the ASW1X at the London Paralympics, winning silver. After London, she took an extended break from the international rowing circuit, instead competing in wheelchair marathons and undertaking a 1000km row across France. She returned to the sport in 2018 with Tokyo firmly in her sights. She won another World Championship silver medal in 2019 and followed that with European gold in 2020. This season she slipped back to 4th at the European Championships, citing a lack of mid-race endurance for her disappointing (by her standards) performance.
Tokyo prospects: with more training and race prep under her belt, she will be one of the main contenders for a medal.
Germany: Sylvia Pille-Steppat (53)
Pille-Steppat first raced internationally back in 2014, starting in the Mixed 2X with Marcus Klemp and finishing last of the nine boats. In 2015 she moved into the single, finishing 10th. Racing 2000m rather than 1000m seems to suit Pille-Steppat as she won her first World Championships medal over the longer distance in 2017 and just missed out on a podium the following year. She also reached the A-Final in 2019, and in 2020 won her 2nd Championship medal taking bronze at the European Championships.
Tokyo prospects: An A-Final placing will be a good result, although she may just miss out and be at the top end of the B-Final.
Israel: Moran Samuel (39)
Samuel is a former member of the Israeli Air Force and was a member of the Israeli basketball team. In 2006 she suffered a spinal stroke (the same injury that hit Great Britain’s triple Olympic Champion Pete Reed in 2019). She returned to competitive sport, playing for the Israel Wheelchair Basketball team at the 2011 European Championships, and after also playing at the 2013 Championships, was voted one of the top five players in Europe. In 2010 she also started rowing, winning a bronze medal at the Adaptive World Championships in 2011. She raced at the London Paralympics, reaching the A-Final, and in 2014 won her 2nd World Championships medal. In 2015 she became World Champion and in 2016 won a bronze medal at the Rio Paralympics. She won further World Championship silver medals in 2017 and 2018, and then in 2019; she won her 6th World Championship medal taking bronze. This season she has another silver medal, this time from the European Championships.
Tokyo prospects: One of the favourites for a medal, it’ll be a surprise if she doesn’t make the podium, but the question will be what colour medal will she come away with?
Japan: Tomomi Ichikawa (41)
Ichikawa qualified the boat for her home Paralympics following a head-to-head duel with Samith Samanmalee Gowinnage Donna of Sri Lanka. By winning the race, she becomes the first Japanese rower to qualify for the Paralympic Games. She’s raced at both the 2018 and 2019 World Championships, finishing 7th in 2018 and 14th in 2019.
Tokyo prospects: Likely to be battling for 11th-12th places.
Kenya: Asiya Sururu (29)
Sururu lost her legs after being hit by a train at the age of just 2. 20 years later, she decided to take up the sport to aid her fitness. Just soon excelled in tennis, badminton and rowing, winning medals in all three disciplines as well as competing in wheelchair marathons. She made her international debut at the Gavirate Regatta in 2019 and went on to win the African Paralympic Qualifying regatta in Tunisia (despite having to borrow kit from her able-bodied male compatriots). Her win in Tunisia not only secured her place in Tokyo (the only Kenyan rower to do so) but also secured her the donation of two boats from World Rowing (one for training and one for racing). In Tokyo, she said, “I don’t want to finish last [but] I am very realistic”.
Tokyo prospects: with all the problems Sururu has faced in funding her Paralympic ambitions, it’s a huge achievement for her just to make the start line. It’s likely to be a battle between her and Ichikawa for 11th and 12th places.
Korea: Sejeong Kim (45)
Kim won her place at the Tokyo Paralympics by winning the B-Final at the 2019 World Championships and grabbing the final automatic qualifying spot.
She started her international career in 2013, placing 7th at the World Championships on her home water in Chungju. She qualified for the boat for Rio and at the Paralympics placed 8th overall. She took a break from international competition in 2017 and 2018 before returning in 2019 and qualifying for her 2nd Paralympic Games.
Tokyo prospects: Likely to be the upper-end of the B-Final.
Norway: Birgit Skarstein (32)
Like Vauchok of Belarus, Skarstein has competed at both the summer and winter Paralympics. As a cross-Country skier, she raced at both the 2014 and 2018 Winter Paralympics. She also raced at the Rio Summer Paralympics, finishing 4th in the single sculls. She started her international rowing career in 2013, winning an Adaptive World Championship silver medal in her first season. She followed that up with the world title in 2014 and bronze in 2015. With the change in race distance from 1000m to 2000m Skarstein has become the dominant athlete in the PR1W1X. Since 2017 she is unbeaten in the event, winning the World titles in 2017, 2018 and 2019. In 2021 she won her first European title; she will be heading into Tokyo as the overwhelming favourite to take the gold.
Tokyo prospects: probably one of the strongest favourites to take the gold. It’s going to take something special to stop her from taking the top honours.
Ukraine: Anna Sheremet (20)
The youngest athlete in the event, Sheremet, has been competing internationally since 2018. She won silver at both the 1st and 2nd World Cups in her first season, and in 2019 just missed out on the podium at the World Championships. She finished runner-up to Benoit at the 2020 European Championships in at the 2021 event took bronze behind Skarstein and Samuel.
Tokyo prospects: Another solid A-Final prospect with an outside chance of a bronze medal
USA: Hallie Smith (28)
A graduate of Smith College, Hallie Smith took to rowing after graduating with a degree in psychology. She was diagnosed with Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia which led to the loss of the use of her legs in her Junior year. She took to rowing whilst undergoing treatment at MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, and within 18 months, had made the US Team. She moved to Boston to train at the Community Rowing Inc Para High-Performance Centre. She made her international debut in 2017, finishing 6th at the World Championships. A year later, she won her first World Championship medal with a bronze, and in 2019, she qualified for Tokyo with an A-Final finish in Linz. She is also the current Indoor rowing World Record Holder with a time of 9:18.5.
Tokyo prospects: In a stacked field, she has an outside chance of a medal.
My picks: it’ll take something special to stop Skarstein of Norway from taking the gold, but behind her, it’s going to be a huge battle for the lesser medals. Any one of 3 or 4 athletes could take the medals. I’m going for Samuel of Israel in silver and Benoit of France in bronze.
PR2 Mix2X
Rio Champions: Great Britain (Lauren Rowles & Laurence Whiteley)
Rio Silver Medallists: China (Shuang Liu & Tianming Fei)
Rio Bronze Medallists: France (Perle Bouge & Stephane Tardieu)
Australia: Simon Albury (39) & Kathryn Ross (40)
Ross is one of a select band of para-rowers who have competed at 4 Paralympics. She won a silver medal in Beijing, partnered with John Mclean, with whom she also won World Championship bronze in 2011. At the London Paralympics, she was partnered by Gavin Bellis, finishing in 5th place. This partnership won World Championship gold in 2013, 2014 and 2015. However, they had a disappointing regatta in Rio, only managing 8th place. In 2019 Ross won the PR2W1X World title, and for Tokyo, she has a new partner, Simon Albury.
Albury will be making his international debut in Tokyo and earlier this year won the Australian national PR2M1X title. Albury took up rowing in 2019 as part of his rehabilitation following a farmyard accident in 2017. He and Ross successfully qualified the boat for Tokyo after finishing 2nd at the Final Paralympic Qualifying Regatta at Gavirate in May this year.
Tokyo prospects: A relatively new combination, but Ross is hugely experienced. An A-Final placing will be the minimum expectation for this crew.
Brazil: Josiane Dias Di Lima (46) & Michel Gomes Pessanha (42)
Josiane Dias Di Lima, like Kathryn Ross, is one of only 6 rowers for whom Tokyo will be their 4th Paralympics. She was partnered with Elton Santana in Beijing and came away with a bronze medal. This duo also won a silver medal in 2009. At the London Paralympics, Dias Di Lima was partnered by Isaac Ribeiro and finished 2nd in the B-Final for 8th place overall. In 2014 she formed a new partnership with Michel Gomes Pessanha, and the two of them won World Championship bronze in their first season together. They just missed out on an A-final appearance in Rio, winning the B-Final to take 7th overall. In 2018 they returned to the A-Final at the World Championships but just missed out on a podium placing, and in 2019 they safely qualified the boat for Tokyo, following a 5th place at the World Championships.
Tokyo prospects: Another crew who will be expecting to make the A-Final as an absolute minimum, and maybe an outside bet for a bronze.
Canada: Jessye Brockway (28) & Jeremey Hall (30)
A relatively new combination, Brockway and Hall finished 11th at the 2019 World Championships. They raced at the Final Paralympic Qualifying regatta but finished one place outside of the qualification spots. However, a few weeks after the FPQR, they were granted a bipartite spot by the IPC. Hall, who took up rowing in 2017, won silver in the PR2M1X at the World Championships in 2019. However, with the PR2M1X being a non-Paralympic event, he needed to find a partner for the PR2Mix2X and formed a partnership with Brockway.
Tokyo prospects: One of the lowest-ranked crews in the event, but one with plenty of potential. An A-Final placing would be a major achievement. However, it’s more likely they will be battling for a strong B-Final placing.
China: Shuang Liu (27) & Jijian Jiang (29)
China were silver medallists in 2016 and Shuang Liu is back for her 2nd Paralympic Games. In Rio, she was partnered by Tianming Fei, and this duo also took 4th at the 2017 World Championships. In 2019 Liu formed a new partnership with Jijian Jiang, finishing 7th at the World Championships. Jiang is a former international para-canoeist and competed at the 2016 Para-canoeing World Championships, finishing 9th in the KL3 200m.
Tokyo prospects: Perhaps not the force they once were, but will nevertheless be a crew who are “there or thereabouts”, should make the A-Final but probably not challenging for the medals.
France: Christophe Lavigne (50) & Perle Bouge (43)
Bouge has been competing internationally since 2010 and raced with Stephane Tardieu from 2010 to 2016, winning World Championships silver medals in 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014 and a Paralympic silver medal in 2012. In 2015 Bouge and Tardieu took bronze at the World Championships and another bronze in 2016 at the Rio Paralympics. Bouge won gold in the PR2W1X in 2018 and, in 2019, formed a new partnership with Christophe Lavigne. This pairing won bronze at the 2019 World Championships and was 4th at the 2020 European Championships. This season they have a bronze from the European Championships and took another bronze medal at Gavirate Regatta.
Tokyo prospects: Always near the podium, the French will be looking to take another Paralympic medal in Tokyo, probably won’t be the gold, but will be in the battle for silver and bronze.
Great Britain: Laurence Whiteley (29) & Lauren Rowles (23)
The defending champions and the reigning World Champions, the British will head into Tokyo as strong favourites to retain their title. Whiteley was a junior Triathlete before bone cancer saw him need titanium rods inserted in his leg. He started rowing in 2011 at Tees Rowing Club and in 2014 joined the national squad in Caversham. Rowles was inspired to take up sport whilst watching the 2012 Paralympics during her rehabilitation at Stoke Mandeville Spinal Injuries Unit. She first took up Wheelchair racing and represented England at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. She switched to rowing in 2015 and formed a partnership with Whiteley. In their first season together, they took silver at the 2015 World Championships before going on to claim the gold in Rio (setting a new World Best Time in the process). Injury to Rowles meant they missed the 2017 World Championships. But, they returned with a bang in 2019, winning the World Championships, and in 2021, they added the European title to their impressive list of achievements.
Tokyo prospects: favourites for gold, and it’ll take something special to stop them from retaining their title.
Italy: Chiara Nardo (47) & Gian Filippo Mirabile (53)
The pairing of Nardo and Mirabile is new for 2021, and after finishing 5th at the European Championships, went on to qualify the boat for Tokyo with victory at the Final Paralympic Qualifying Regatta on home water in Gavirate. Mirabile raced in this boat class in 2019, finishing 6th with partner Maryam Afgei. For 2020 he was partnered by Laura Morato and placed 6th at the European Championships. 2021 is Nardo’s first international season.
Tokyo prospects: If they can make the A-final, that’ll be a major achievement for the Italians, but a mid-B-Final placing is probably more likely.
The Netherlands: Annika Van Der Meer (35) & Corne De Koning (31)
The Dutch will be the biggest challengers to Great Britain’s hopes of retaining their title. Van Der Meer and De Koning were World Champions in 2017 and 2018 and took the European title in 2020, but crucially these were events where Rowles and Whiteley didn’t compete. In head-to-head races, the Dutch have yet to get the better of the British, finishing runners-up in 2019 and at the 2021 Europeans. De Koning has been racing in this event since 2013, partnered by Esther Van Der Loos, with whom he finished 5th in 2013, 2014, 2015 and again at the Rio Paralympics. Van Der Meer graduated from medical school in December 2019, and when the Paralympics were delayed due to COVID, she took time away from rowing to work at the Paediatric Oncology Hospital. A talented skier until an accident caused damage to her legs and confined her to a wheelchair, further complications forced her to quit para-skiing and instead, she turned her attention to rowing. She made her international debut in 2017 and has raced with De Koning ever since. After finishing runners-up to the British at the European Championships, they went on to race at the Gavirate Para-Rowing Regatta and took gold in the PR2 Mix2X.
Tokyo prospects: It’ll be a huge shock if the Dutch don’t make the podium; the bigger question is, can they finally get the better of the British?
Poland: Jolanta Majka (43) & Michal Gadowski (30)
Majka is another of the select band of six athletes to have competed at all of the Paralympics, which have featured rowing. She also competed at the 2000 Paralympics in swimming events. She made her international rowing debut in 2006, racing with her husband Piotr, winning World Championship silver in 2006 and bronze in 2007 and made the A-Final in Beijing. After Piotr retired, she formed a new partnership with Michal Gadowski. This pairing is one of the most established in the field, having been competing together since 2011. They took 10th at the London Paralympics and, after winning the B-Finals in 2014 and 2015, reached the A-Final in Rio. 2017 saw them claim their first World Championship medal as a partnership, taking the bronze medal. They went one better in 2018 but slipped back to 6th in 2019. They returned to the podium to take bronze at the 2020 Europeans and in 2021 just missed out on repeating that achievement, ending up 4th. They also raced at the Gavirate Para-Rowing regatta, taking the silver medal behind the Dutch.
Tokyo prospects: Strong A-Final candidates, but it will take something special to get among the medals.
Ukraine: Svitlana Bohuslavska (33) & Iaroslav Koiuda (33)
Koiuda has been racing on the Para-Rowing circuit since 2013, initially in the Mix 4+ boat, which reached the World Championship A-Finals in 2013 and 2014 and finished 5th at the Rio Paralympics. In 2017 he moved into the mixed double and took a world Championship silver medal partnered by Iryna Kyrychenko. In 2018 he formed a new partnership with Bohuslavska and made the podium at the World Championships. They just missed out on repeating that achievement in 2019, but a 4th place saw them qualify comfortably for Tokyo. In 2020 they won European silver behind the Dutch, and at this year’s Europeans, they reached the A-Final.
Tokyo prospects: Like the Poles, they will be solid A-Final contenders but will also be in the hunt for the minor medals.
USA: Laura Goodkind (35) & Russell Gernaat (55)
8th in 2019, Goodkind and Gernaat are a relatively new pairing. Goodkind competed at the Rio Paralympics, with Helman Roman finishing 10th. In 2017 she was partnered by Isaac French, reaching the A-Final at the World Championships. 2018 saw her with her 3rd partner in 3 years when she again reached the World Championship A-Final, this time with Ronald Harvey. Gernaat, a former US Navy Seal, competed in the PR3 mixed double in 2017 with Natalie McCarthy.
Tokyo prospects: Likely to be towards the upper end of the B-Final.
Uzbekistan: Feruza Buriboeva (22) & Otabek Kucherov (24)
The youngest crew in the event, Buriboeva and Kucherov, secured their place in Tokyo with 3rd place at the Final Paralympic Qualifying Regatta. They also raced on the Sunday of the Gavirate Para-Rowing Regatta, finishing 2nd behind the French. Kucherov raced at the 2019 World Championships, partnered by Gulchiroy Esanbaeva, finishing 12th.
Tokyo prospects: probably the lowest ranked crew in the event, likely to be battling for 11th or 12th.
My picks… Should be another epic battle between Great Britain and the Netherlands for the gold medal, and I think the Brits will come out on top. Behind these two, it’s going to be a great battle for the final medal with any one of Australia, France, Poland and Ukraine in contention…..I’m going for France to get the bronze.
PR3 Mix 4+
Rio Champions: Great Britain (Grace Clough, Daniel Brown, Pam Relph, James Fox, Oliver James)
Rio Silver Medallists: USA (Jaclyn Smith, Danielle Hansen, Zachary Burns, Dorian Weber, Jennifer Sichel)
Rio Bronze Medallists: Canada (Victoria Nolan, Meghan Montgomery, Andrew Todd, Curtis Halladay, Kristen Kit)
Australia: Alexandra Viney (29), Nikka Ayers (30), Thomas Birtwhistle (28), James Talbot (28), Ranae Domaschenz (42)
Australia has made two changes to the crew that finished 4th at the 2019 World Championships. Out goes Alex Vuillermin and Ben Gibson, replaced by Nikka Ayers and Thomas Birtwhistle. Ayers returns to the boat she raced in 2018 and finished 4th, a former rugby player, a severe knee injury saw the end of her rugby career, but she was spotted by the Australian Train4Tokyo scheme and says of rowing “I gave it a go and have loved it ever since”. Birtwhistle returned to competitive rowing after training on the ergo during the COVID lockdown. Victory in the PR3M1X at the Australian Championships and also at the Gaviate Para-Rowing regatta saw him selected for the Paralympic 4+. Viney was talented junior rowing but suffered severe injuries in a road accident. In 2018 she returned to the sport she loved, and in 2019 was selected for the PR3 mixed 4+, winning silver in Gavirate and 4th at the World Championships. Talbot was another athlete who rowed as a junior and suffered a severe hand injury in a road traffic accident. He returned to rowing in 2018 as a member of Sydney University Rowing Club and in 2018 was selected to represent Australia at the World Championships finishing 5th in the PR3 Mix4+ and winning a silver medal in the PR3 M2-. Cox of the Aussie 4 is Dr Ranae Domaschenz; she is well known to UK audiences, having coxed the Cambridge Lightweight Women’s Blue Boat in 2004 and also at Molesey Boat Club.
Tokyo prospects: should be aiming for the A-Final but unlikely to be among the medal contenders.
Brazil: Ana Madruga De Souza (36), Diana Barcelos De Oliveira (33), Valdeni Da Silva Junior (31), Jairo Klug Frohlich (37), Jucelino De Silva (49)
After finishing 9th at the 2019 World Championships, the Brazilians needed to race at the Final Paralympic Qualifying Regatta at Gavirate in June. They secured their place in Tokyo with a 2nd place behind Canada, making them one of only three nations to qualify boats in all four boat classes (the other two being Ukraine and the USA). Brazil made two changes to the crew that finished 9th in Linz, with Madruga De Souza and Da Silva Junior replacing Angel Moraes and Erik da Silva Lima. Barcelos De Oliveira and Klug Frohlich rowed together in the PR3Mix2X (a non-Paralympic event) in 2017 and 2018, winning gold at the World Championships. They were also members of the PR3Mix4+ in 2014 and 2015, finishing 5th and 10th, respectively. Klug Frohlich also raced in the mixed four at the London Paralympics, which placed 9th.
Tokyo prospects: likely to be in the lower half of the B-Final
Canada: Bayleigh Hooper (22), Andrew Todd (32), Victoria Nolan (46), Kyle Fredrickson (22), Laura Court (24)
Canada is the reigning Paralympic bronze medallist, but because they didn’t compete at the 2019 World Championships, they had to qualify via the Final Paralympic qualifying Regatta at Gavirate in June. They duly won that event and secured their place in Tokyo. The crew is the same line-up that finished just outside of the medal in 2018. Victoria Nolan will be racing at her 4th Paralympics and was a member of the crew that won bronze in Rio. She also has a World Championship gold medal to her name from 2010, and indeed the Canadian crew of 2010 were the last crew to defeat the all-conquering British. Andrew Todd was another member of the Rio bronze medal-winning crew, and in 2019, he and crew-mate Kyle Fredrickson won gold in the PR3 M2-, successfully defending the title they won in 2018. Bayleigh Hooper is the newest member of the crew; she started rowing at the age of 18 and made her senior debut in 2018. Coxswain Laura Court is a two-time U23 World Champion having coxed the BW8 to victory in 2017 and 2018.
Tokyo prospects: Despite not racing in 2019, the Canadians have a good pedigree and should make the A-Final.
Spain: Josefa Benitez Guzman (51), Jorge Pineda Matabuena (24), Enrique Floriano Millan (38), Veronica Rodriguez Pulido (33), Maria Armendariz Zubillaga (47)
Spain has a brand-new crew for 2021 and came together earlier in the year with the intention of targeting qualification for the 2024 Paralympics. They raced at the Final Paralympic Qualifying Regatta in June in order to gain some racing experience, and much to their surprise, they finished 3rd and qualified for Tokyo. Only one of the crew, Jorge Pineda, has raced internationally before this season, finishing 8th in the PR2 M1x in 2018 and 4th in the same event in 2019. But despite being relative novices on the international rowing circuit, this crew is packed with Paralympic experience. Enrique Floriano is one of Spain’s most successful Paralympians. He has competed in the swimming events at the Sydney, Beijing and London Paralympics and has, so far, amassed two gold, four silver and two bronze medals, as well as a host of World and European Championship medals. Josefa Benitez is another experienced and decorated Paralympian. She competed in the Road Race at the 2012 Paralympics, winning a silver medal. The final member of the crew is Veronica Rodriguez, a cerebral palsy sufferer who became the first woman to compete at the Soto del Barco Regatta in a traditional Chalana boat in 2019. She was spotted at that regatta and invited to try rowing, and joined the para-rowing team earlier this season.
Tokyo prospects: For such a brand-new crew to qualify for the Paralympics is a great achievement, unlikely to make the A-Final, but it will be a great experience in their campaign for Paris 2024.
France: Erika Sauzeau (39), Antoine Jesel (39), Remy Taranto (39), Margot Boulet (31), Robin Le Barreau (28)
The French have three of the crew that finished 8th at the Rio Paralympics. Antoine Jesel and Remy Taranto also raced in this boat class at the London Paralympics and have been racing together since 2009. The highlight of their para-Rowing careers came in 2018 when they won bronze in the mixed 4+ at the World Championships. 7th in 2019 saw the French secure the penultimate direct qualifying spot. The crew raced at the 2020 European Championships with Guylaine Marchand at bow, picking up the bronze medal. For the 2021 European’s, Sauzeau came into the crew, and they took silver, 13 seconds behind the British. Sauze is very new to the sport and first stepped into a boat in 2019; her potential was spotted as part of the La Relève (“Future Generation”) programme specifically aimed at developing Paralympians for the home Games in 2024.
Tokyo prospects: They should definitely feature in the A-Final and have an outside chance of a medal.
Great Britain: Ellen Buttrick (26), Giedre Rakauskaite (30), James Fox (29), Oliver Stanhope (23), Erin Kennedy (29).
Great Britain are the powerhouse of the PR3Mix4+. A British crew haven’t been beaten in this boat class (or its predecessor, the LTA Mix 4+) since the World Championships of 2010. James Fox is the sole remaining member of the Paralympic Champion crew. A member of Leander Club, he represented Great Britain as a junior and went on to row for the University of London. As well as the Paralympic title, he has no less than 6 World Championship titles in a career dating back to 2013. Ollie Stanhope (son of Olympic silver medallist and Henley Steward, Richard) joined the Paralympic squad in 2017 and was a member of the World Championship-winning crews from 2017-2019. He raced at Henley for Hampton School and also with Molesey Boat Club in the Thames Cup. Rakauskaite moved to the UK from Lithuania in 2011 and studied Sports Science at Worcester University, and became Head Coach at Hereford Cathedral School. She raced for Worcester Rowing Club at Henley Women’s Regatta and Henley Royal Regatta. She joined the GB Para-Rowing team in 2017 and has been a member of the PR3 Mix4+ ever since. The newest rower in the crew is Ellen Buttrick; she was recruited into rowing in 2018 after attending a Para-Rowing Talent ID day and within 12 months had become World Champion as part of the dominant GB PR3 Mix4+. A charity worker when she’s not training, she has been part of the crew since 2018 and successfully defended their title in 2019 and won their first European title in 2021. The crew is coxed by Erin Kennedy, cox of the victorious Oxford Women’s Blue Boat in 2014 and began coxing the para squad in 2018.
Tokyo prospects: Overwhelming favourites for the gold. It will be a huge upset if the British don’t retain their title.
Israel: Michal Feinblat (36), Simona Goran Shtouk (39), Barak Hazor (35), Achiya Klein (29), Marlaina Miller (26)
6th in the world in 2019, Israel has the full line-up from 2019 competing in Tokyo. The crew includes two athletes (Shtouk and Klein) who were part of the PR3 Mix4+ that finished 5th at the 2017 World Championships. Whilst Tokyo will be the first Paralympics for Feinblat; she already has Olympic experience to her credit. She competed in 2004 as Israel’s only female Judoka, and she was widely tipped to medal in Beijing, however serious shoulder injury sustained in training ended her Olympic hopes, but she turned to Paralympic sport, and in 2018 she joined the Paralympic rowing team spurred on by her friend and fellow Paralympic rower Moran Samuel. The crew (with Shay-Lee Mizrachi at bow in place of Feinblat) raced at the European Championships this season, finishing 5th.
Tokyo prospects: Another crew capable of making the A-Final but unlikely to be challenging for the medals.
Italy: Cristina Scazzosi (41), Alessandro Brancato (25), Lorenzo Bernard (24), Greta Muti (27), Lorena Fuina (37)
The Italians were a new crew put together for the 2019 season, which saw them successfully qualify for the Tokyo Paralympics and pick a World Championship bronze medal. As well as rowing, Bernard is a successful para-skier who is targeting competing at the Beijing Winter Paralympics in 2022; he was partially blinded in 2013 when a WW2 mine exploded in a field he was in. he took up rowing in 2018 and was selected for the PR3 Mix4+ in 2019. Brancato rowed as a junior and joined the para-rowing team three years after a motorbike accident meant he lost part of his foot. Scazzosi, a member of the Lago D’Orta club, started rowing in 2014 and made her international debut in 2016, racing at the 3rd World Cup. Greta Muti is a medical student from a small island off the Tuscan coast. At the time of the outbreak of the COVID pandemic, she was training in Milan but returned home to assist her mother (a doctor) in managing the pandemic on their island. Born with Erb’s Palsy, she used rowing and playing the cello to help strengthen her muscles and mobility. She made her international debut in 2018, winning a silver medal at the 2nd World Cup. The Italians raced at the 2020 European Championships, taking the title by 3 seconds ahead of Ukraine. They also raced at the 2021 Europeans, just missing out on a podium finish.
Tokyo prospects: Strong A-Final contenders, but may just miss out on a medal.
Japan: Haruka Yao (24), Yui Kimura (17), Toshihiro Nishioka (49), Ryohei Ariyasu (34), Hiroyuki Tatsuta (29).
Japan come into their home Paralympics as probably the lowest ranked crew in the competition. They finished 14th at the 2019 World Championships, and when the Paralympics were delayed, one of the crew, Maiko Sato, retired. In her place comes 17-year-old Yui Kimura. They were unable to secure qualification via the Final Paralympic Qualifying Regatta but were awarded a Bipartite place. Ariyasu and Nishioka raced together in the PR3 M2- in 2018 finishing one place off the medal podium.
Tokyo prospects: As the lowest-ranked crew in the event, and placing higher than 12th will be positive.
Russian Paralympic Committee: Anna Piskunova (25), Ekaterina Moshkovskaia (24), Anton Voronov (24), Evgenii Borisov (36), Evgenii Terekhov (24).
The Russian’s have three of the crew who finished 5th at the 2019 World Championships and qualified the boat for Tokyo (Piskunova, Borisov and cox Terekhov). The two new members of the crew are both making their international rowing debuts. Ekaterina Mashkovskaia has already represented Russia at the Paralympics in both the Para-Biathlon and Para-Cross Country at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games. She plans to compete in the Nordic events at the 2022 Beijing Paralympics. During the 2018 Games, she was approached by the Sports Federation of Persons With Mobility Disorders asking if she would be interested in rowing. Anton Voronov is the 2nd newcomer to the boat; in 2015, he suffered severe arm and leg injuries in an avalanche whilst working at a weather station on Mount Kukisvumchorr. He took up rowing in 2019 and says of the sport, “Rowing for me is not just a Paralympic sport, but much more. It is what brought me back to life and helps me to feel like a fully-fledged person”. Borisov made his senior debut in 2016, winning bronze in the LTAMix2X with Valentina Zhagot. This duo repeated the medal-winning performance in 2018 (with Borosov doubling up in the PR3Mix4+). In 2019 he and Zhagot completed a hattrick of PR3Mix2X medals, but this time it was gold. The crew raced at the 2020 European Championships, finishing 4th.
Tokyo prospects: Likely to be in the middle of the B-Final.
Ukraine: Oleksandra Polianska (24), Dariia Kotyk (17), Stanislav Samoliuk (19), Maksym Zhuk (30), Yuliia Malasai (26)
Ukraine was 8th at the 2019 World Championships, securing the final direct qualifying spot for Tokyo. They have all five of the crew back for the Paralympics. Two of the crew, Polianska & Zhuk, were members of the Mix4+ that finished 9th at the Rio Paralympics and were also in the boat that competed at the 2017 and 2018 World Championships. Polianska is the wife of Rio Paralympic champion Roman Polyanskyi; she took up the sport in 2012 and made her international debut in 2015. With two teenagers onboard, the Ukrainians are the youngest crew in the event, with an average age of 23. The crew have improved from their 8th place finish in 2019, racing at both the 2020 and 2021 European Championships, winning silver in 2020 and bronze in 2021.
Tokyo prospects: Performances in 2021 show that they are outside bets for a medal; expect them to be in the hunt for the bronze.
USA: Alexandra Reilly (23), Danielle Hansen (27), Charley Nordin (24), John Tanguay (23), Karen Petrik (23)
The American Mix4+ must be getting pretty fed up with hearing God Save The Queen, they’ve been runners-up to the British at every race since 2014, and Danielle Hansen has been in the crew every time. She’s got an incredible medal haul with 5 World Championship silver medals, a Paralympic silver medal, a Royal Canadian Henley gold, and four Head of The Charles wins. She also won World Championship gold in the PR3 W2- in 2018, A university of Washington graduate, she is another athlete (like Italy’s Greta Muti) who has Erb’s Palsy. Allie Reilly graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 2019. During her time at Rhode Island, she raced in the 1st Varsity at the NCAA championships and won the Varsity Eights at the Atlantic 10 Championships. She set a World Record for the PR3 open division at the 2019 World Indoor Rowing Championships and made her senior international debut in 2018. Charley Nordin broke his back in his junior year of High School but refused to let that stop him from competing in able-bodied sport. He made the Gonzaga University 2nd Varsity crew as a walk-on in his Freshman year and went on to win 2nd Varsity 8’s at the 2018 Western Sprints Challenge. He made his international debut in the Para-Rowing PR3Mix4+ in 2018, taking silver. John Tanguay is a graduate of Columbia University and, like Nordin, rowed in the 2nd Varsity whilst at University competing at the IRA’s and Eastern Sprints. Tanguay is currently studying for a Masters in Supply Chain Management at the University of Dublin. Cox of the crew is Karen Petrik, a fellow University of Rhode Island graduate. She was in the crew with Allie Reilly that won the Atlantic 10 Championships.
Tokyo prospects: The USA reckon they have a crew capable of breaking GB’s dynasty in the event…..I’m not so sure; I think they’ll pick up yet another silver medal.
My picks…..Great Britain remains undefeated, with the USA in silver and the bronze going to France.
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