With the first round of GB trials for the Olympics next year complete, it got me thinking of something I first thought about in the aftermath of the World Championships back in September – what should have been prioritised? Becoming world champions or qualifying more boats for the Olympics?
Don’t get me wrong – for the most part, the GB rowing team had a great regatta, winning four golds, a silver and a bronze in the Olympic boat classes. However, they haven’t yet qualified both men’s and women’s singles and doubles in addition to the lightweight men’s double. Yes, they didn’t enter boats into two of those categories and, to be honest, I’m not really sure there is enough depth on the men’s sculling side at the moment, so targeting the quad was probably a good idea.
However, with different line-ups, it is highly likely that two openweight women’s sculling boats would have already qualified for Paris.
I realise this is somewhat controversial, especially as the women’s quad won the world title in what was, as a Brit, easily my favourite race of the regatta. With a crew change, they may not have won, although they did come second at World Cup II with a change in the line-up.
Either the double or the single could have qualified, but the advantage of the double is that an extra seat would be available for Paris.
To be fair, they did only just miss out, coming in 13th with the top 11 qualifying.
It could be that the selectors genuinely thought the double would qualify, but I am not totally convinced as the boat came ninth at the European Rowing Championships and tenth at World Cup II. This essentially puts that boat exactly in the same place as it was four years ago.
The athletes that get selected for the double will be put in the unenviable position of not having the certainty of the Olympics to aim for.
Their only chance to race the double at the Olympics is if they place in the top two at the Final Olympic Qualification Regatta (FOQR) in Lucerne next May. I would argue that this is probably the toughest regatta in elite rowing as the stakes are high and the competition fierce.
Place in the top two and you qualify, else your Olympic dream is over almost before it started.
In addition, many medalists often end up qualifying via this route. In the 2021 regatta, the New Zealand men’s eight won the FOQR and then went on to win the Olympics. The Australian women’s quad, the Irish women’s four and the Chinese women’s eight also won the FOQR and then came third at the Olympics to name just a few.
If we combine this with the fact that the top three in the C Final at the World Championships finished just over 1.5 seconds apart, the odds don’t look too good.
To add to this, if the boat does qualify, then the athletes cannot be changed which gives little flexibility if an athlete improves.
So why should we care how many boats qualify for the Olympics?
The Olympics is once every four years, and winning a medal at the games is the goal for many elite rowers.
It is the pinnacle of the sport.
Competition at the Olympics is a step up from the World Championships, and ultimately not everyone can come away with a medal. However, having this experience enables the athletes to learn so much that they can take away and then come back stronger next time.
The GB rowing team had a rather disappointing regatta at the Tokyo Olympics, winning just two medals and failing to win a gold for the first time since 1980, in addition to the heartbreak of six fourth-place finishes.
Since then, they have been quite dominant, topping the medal table at the 2022 World Championships and coming second in 2023. Many athletes who didn’t win a medal in Tokyo can now call themselves World Champion and I would be very surprised if the team doesn’t come away with multiple gold medals in Paris next year.
Winning medals is all well and good, but one eye still needs to be firmly kept on development for the Los Angeles games and beyond.
I truly believe that one of the reasons the GB team has been so successful in this cycle is because of the disappointment of Tokyo. It is almost like a fire has been lit inside them and they are so determined to put GB back on top of the rowing world.
Not having as many boats qualified means that up and coming athletes who break into the GB senior team this season may not make it to the Olympics and so when they are potentially expected to win medals in 2028, they don’t have the advantage of already having an Olympic experience under their belt. This could lead to mistakes or being so overawed by the situation that they don’t row to the best of their ability so the result doesn’t match the potential of the crew.
Overall, whilst being a world champion is an incredible achievement, when aiming to qualify boats for the Olympics, the bigger picture should be looked at.
I realise that funding may play a role in crew selection, but future development is just as important as winning medals now and if there is an opportunity to qualify more boats for the Olympics, I believe this should be seized with both hands.
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