Rowers to Watch: 2022 World Rowing Coastal Championships

The 2022 World Rowing Coastal Championships are just around the corner, scheduled to get underway this coming Friday, 7 October, in Saundersfoot Harbour, Pembrokeshire, Great Britain.

With over 200 crews participating, the event will feature seven boat classes: the Men’s and Women’s Solos, Double Sculls, and Coxed Quadruple Sculls, as well as the Mixed Double Sculls. Here are our rowers to watch:

Men’s Solo (CM1x)

Entries: 44

The standout name in the Men’s Solo has to be Adrian Miramon Quiroga. Not only is he the bronze medallist from last year’s event (after having capsized in the final and getting back in and up to speed with the rest of the pack), he is also the 2019 World Champion in this event.

With the gold and silver medallists from last year absent, eyes will also be on Spaniards Ramon Cotilla, and Marc Montfort, who finished 4th and 5th respectfully.

William Loftus will once again be racing as GBR01, hoping to improve on his 6th place from Oeiras on his home turf.

Other big names in this boat class are Joel Naukkarinen (FIN01), Ronan Byrne (IRL05), Simone Martini (ITA01), Mitchel Steenman (NED01), Matthew Dunham (NZL01), Maciej Zawojski (POL01), and Peter Berg (SWE01).

Women’s Solo (CW1x)

Entries: 36

With current World Champion Stefania Gobbi, Italy, absent at these Championships, Diana Dymchenko, this year competing for Azerbaijan, and Jessica Berra of France, will both have their sights set on the top prize. Dymchenko and Berra finished second and third last year.

Also with her eyes on the podium will be Maria Berg of Sweden, who finished fourth in Oeiras.

Monika Dukarska of Ireland, will be looking for redemption, after capsizing early in last year’s race, and not finishing. Dukarska is an experienced coastal rower, and flat water Olympian.

The Dutch pair of Maartje Damen and Dieuwertje Den Besten who raced at the 2022 World Rowing Cup II will also both be competing in the Women’s Solo.

Other names to keep an eye on are Agnieska Kobus-Zawojska, from Poland, silver medallist in the Women’s Quadruple Sculls at Tokyo 2020, Janneke van der Meulen of the Netherlands, who is an experienced coastal rower, and Hannah Huppi of the United States.

Men’s Double (CM2x)

Entries: 38

The defending World Rowing Champions in this boat class are back and hoping to defend their title. Eskil Borgh and Dennis Gustavsson finished more than 20 seconds ahead of the second place team last year in Oeiras, Portugal.

Benjamin Mason of New Zealand, 2022 U23 Bronze Medallist, will be teaming up with Brook Robertson, Tokyo 2020 Olympian, in what is the first international coastal race for both of them.

Women’s Double (CW2x)

Entries: 28

The podium is wide open for the taking in this event, with all of the 2021 medallists absent. Keep your eyes on IRL06, with recent bronze medallist from the World Rowing Championships in the Women’s Double Sculls (W2x) Zoe Hyde, who is teaming up with Rhiannon O’Donoghue. The Dutch duo of Janneke van der Meulen and Karien Robbers will also be one to watch – both are very experienced rowers who competed internationally.

Mixed Double (CMix2x)

Entries: 36

The 2021 World Rowing Champions in the Mixed Double are back and will be looking to repeat their performance from Oeiras in Wales this year. Esther Briz Zamorano and Ander Martin of Spain are a young duo – both only 22 years old, but have plenty of coastal experience.

Other experienced Mixed Doubles are the Italian couple of Annalisa Cozzarini and Rosario Sebastiano Panteca, but also, the French duo of Edwige Alfred and Ludovic Dubuis (who will be representing Monaco at this event), Canadians Sarah Pidgen and Aubrey Oldham, and Polish couple Maciej Zawojski and Agnieska Kobus-Zawojska.

Men’s Quad (CM4x+)

Entries: 28

Great Britain will be represented by five crews in this boat class, with GBR02 from UL Tyrian Club being made up of no less than four Olympians: Oliver Cooke, Matthew Rossiter, Jacob Dawson, and Henry Fieldman (coxswain). Rossiter and the fifth member of the crew, Richard Clarke, finished 3rd in this boat class in 2021.

Women’s Quad (CW4x+)

Entries: 23

One doesn’t have to look long at this list before names start to jump out: Competing in their first international coastal event, New Zealand’s Emma Twigg and Jackie Kiddle, who both picked up medals at the recent World Rowing Championships in the Women’s Single Sculls, and Lightweight Women’s Single Sculls respectively, are joined by Emma Dyke, Tokyo 2020 silver medallist in the Women’s Eight. They will surely be challenged by USA01, with Paralympic silver medallist Danielle Hansen, and 2021 World Rowing Beach Sprint bronze medallist in the CMix4x+ Christine Cavallo.

ESP01 features four of five of last year’s bronze medallist from this boat class, who will surely be looking for the podium once again.