PRESS RELEASE: 2012 European Rowing Championships attract record number of nations

A total of 448 athletes will be competing in one of the 14 Olympic boat classes. The men’s double sculls (M2x) and men’s single sculls (M1x) have attracted the biggest entries with 18 crews each.

Exciting racing can be expected in the men’s double sculls. A number of 2012 Olympic medallists will be featured, including Alessio Sartori, one of Italy’s all-time top rowers. The three-time Olympic medallist and seven-time world medallist won silver in London with partner Romano Battisti in the men’s double sculls. The duo will be aiming for the podium once again in this boat class on Lake Varese.

Martin and Valent Sinkovic won Olympic silver in the men’s quadruple sculls one month ago, and at the European Rowing Championships the Croatian brothers will form a crew of their own to race in the men’s double sculls.

Dorian Mortelette from France is a two-time Olympic medallist. In London he raced to silver in the men’s pair and in Varese he will be switching to sculling in the men’s double sculls with a different partner, Jean-Baptiste Macquet. Mortelette’s London crewmate Germain Chardin will be racing in the men’s four.

Ukraine’s 2012 Olympic Champions in the women’s quadruple sculls will also be racing, no doubt to prolong the winning streak their country has recorded at the European Rowing Championships for the past five years.

In the lightweight women’s double sculls, Greece’s Alexandra Tsiavou and Christina Giazitzidou will be going back to the starting blocks after winning bronze at the 2012 Olympic Rowing Regatta. Tsiavou has won European gold in this boat class every year since 2007, with Giazitzidou joining her in 2009.

Romania has also scored consecutive wins at the European Rowing Championships – in the women’s eight. Lining up again this year, they will be aiming to defend their status.

This will be the sixth edition of the European Rowing Championships since the regatta has been re-established by FISA in 2007. The European Championships had previously been held on an annual basis from 1893 to 1973. Today, 43 member federations are eligible to take part in this continental championship.

Stay tuned to www.worldrowing.com  to follow the racing live thanks to our Live Race Tracker and audio commentary. Live video streaming will be available for the A-finals on Sunday 16 August from 11:03 CET. Daily race reports as well as a photo gallery will also be published. Results will be transferred in real time to the World Rowing database at www.rowingone.com  and to our mobile platform http://mobile.worldrowing.com.

To view the complete list of entries, please click here. The provisional timetable can be viewed here.