"VAN" (Sports Desk - 25.07.2025) :: There was a morning of fast, close racing at the 2025 World Rowing Under 23 Championships on Thursday, as the heats in another eight events took place on Lake Malta in Poznan.
The stage is now set for semifinals, quarterfinals and minor finals on Friday, with the hunt for medals intensifying.
Both Erik Kallstrom (Sweden) and Aurelia-Maxima Janzen (Switzerland), who won silver in the men’s and women’s single sculls respectively at the 2024 World Rowing Under 23 Championships, progressed safely to the next round. Janzen, competing in her fifth World Rowing Under 23 Championships, looks set for a fifth medal and potentially her second gold after winning her heat in the fastest time of the day.
Kallstrom also won his heat, but Türkiye’s Cevdet Ege Mutlu, who was seventh at the 2025 European Rowing Championships, posted the fastest time. Malaysia’s Kheng Aik Ong and Somalia’s Abdirahman Hassan made history as their nations’ first under 23 rowers, but were off the pace and will race the E-final on Saturday.
Great Britain were the fastest crews in the men’s and women’s quadruple sculls and men’s and women’s eights, with their men’s quadruple sculls crew particularly quick – only 5.62 seconds off the under 23 world best time set last year in St Catharines, Canada, by champions Poland. However, the competition in the big boats looks set to be thrilling, with little separating the top crews in the quads and eights.
Indeed competition for a place in the women’s eights final was fierce. After a close race for second place in heat 1 behind the USA – won by Canada, ahead of Czechia and France – the delighted French women managed to bag one of the six spots in the final, with their time being 0.31 seconds quicker than the Netherlands, third in heat 2.
The men will race semifinals in both events on Saturday, with finals for all the quadruple sculls and eights on Sunday.
The lightweight double sculls also raced heats on Thursday. In the men’s event, the USA were eliminated from the final after posting the slowest time of the seven entrants; Norway were fastest. Greece won the lightweight women’s double sculls preliminary race, with Paschalina Mouratidou and Gavriela Lioliou holding off France for first place. Mouratidou is still just 16 years old and is the youngest competitor at the World Rowing Under 23 Championships.
Racing in Poznan continues on Friday at 14:00 CEST with minor finals, quarterfinals in the men’s single sculls, and semifinals in five events.
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