Murray and Lind the top rowers for 2014

Stalwart of the United States’ very successful women’s eight, Lind is the longest serving member of the crew having sat in stroke or seven seat since 2005. She is in number one spot of the Top 10 women for 2014. Now in six seat of the eight, Lind has helped the crew win their seventh consecutive World Championship title and all but one of the other titles since 2006.

Such is the unprecedented success of the United States women’s eight that it has helped five other members of the crew make it into the 2014 top women’s rankings. Meghan Musnicki sits at number three. Eighth, ninth and tenth-equal spots have gone to Amanda Polk, Grace Luczak, Victoria Opitz and Lauren Schmetterling respectively.

Great Britain’s Helen Glover fills spot number two on the women’s Top 10 list. Like the US women’s eight, Glover has been creating an unbroken streak of her own. Glover has gone undefeated in the women’s pair since 2012. Last year she won with partner Polly Swan and in 2014 Glover’s Olympic Champion partner, Heather Stanning returned to the pair with the two of them winning at the World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam. The duo also set a new World Best Time at the event. Stanning, despite taking 2013 off rowing, comes in at sixth place on the Top 10.

Two of Germany’s World Championship women’s quadruple sculls members made it into the Top 10 with Annekatrin Thiele in fourth and Carina Baer in fifth. Baer is the youngest in this Top 10 list at 24 years old. Australia’s Kim Crow finishes off the Top 10 for women with her 2014 silver in the women’s single sculls and first place in 2013 helping her into the seventh placed position.

For the Top 10 men of 2014, Eric Murray is number one for the first time. Murray is one half of the Kiwi men’s pair with Hamish Bond that has not lost a race since they formed the pair in 2009. Bond comes in at position number two with the duo’s high ranking helped by them also winning the men’s coxed pair this year at the World Rowing Championships. Murray and Bond also own the World Best Time in both the pair and coxed pair.

The third and fourth positions in the men’s Top 10 go to the British men’s four rowers, Andrew Triggs Hodge and Alex Gregory. The duo have been together in the four since 2012 apart from a stint in the men’s eight in 2013 when they helped the crew to win Great Britain’s first ever World Championship gold medal in this boat class. Fellow British rower, Pete Reed comes in at position five after being part of the eight that won both the 2013 and 2014 World Rowing Championships. Before that Reed was in the Olympic Champion four with Gregory and Triggs Hodge.

Brothers Valent and Martin Sinkovic of Croatia come in at fifth and sixth respectively. Together Valent and Martin not only won this year’s World Rowing Championships in the men’s double sculls, but they also set a new World Best Time. Before this the brothers were part of the World Championship men’s quadruple sculls.

Single sculler Ondrej Synek of the Czech Republic sits at spot eight. Synek has been medalling in the men’s single sculls since 2005 and this year he took his third World Championship gold medal title.

Completing the Top 10 for the men are two rowers from Denmark’s flagship boat. Coming in at ninth equal are Kasper Winther and Morten Joergensen. Winther and Joergensen most recently have back-to-back World Championship titles in the lightweight men’s four.

The Top 10 ranking has been updated for 2014 and now better reflects the current year. It is calculated by a formula which weights results in the current year over previous year results with the current year and the past two years results being used. It gives more points to Olympic boat classes over non-Olympic boat classes and also awards points for an unbeaten season, setting and holding a World Best Time in the past three years and also longevity in the sport. The formula does not include rowers that have not medalled at a World Rowing Cup or World Rowing Championships in the current year. It also does not include coxswains and results from under-23 and junior world championships, European Championships and para-rowing boat classes.

2014 Top 10 Female Rowers:
1. Caroline Lind (USA)
2. Helen Glover (GBR)
3. Meghan Musnicki (USA)
4. Annekatrin Thiele (GER)
5. Carina Baer (GER)
6. Heather Stanning (GBR)
7. Kim Crow (AUS)
8. Amanda Polk (USA)
9. Grace Luczak (USA)
10= Victoria Opitz (USA)
10= Lauren Schmetterling (USA)

2014 Top 10 Male Rowers:
1. Eric Murray (NZL)
2. Hamish Bond (NZL)
3. Andrew Triggs Hodge (GBR)
4. Alex Gregory (GBR)
5. Pete Reed (GBR)
6. Valent Sinkovic (CRO)
7. Martin Sinkovic (CRO)
8. Ondrej Synek (CZE)
9= Kasper Winther
9= Morten Joergensen (DEN)

Full list of athletes: http://www.worldrowing.com/athletes/

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