Top 5 in 2025. The moments that stood out in Rowing

A 2025 moment in time. A lifetime of memories. The team at World Rowing has spent the year living and breathing rowing and from that they have compiled the list of their top five moments. Have a look and see how closely it matches your favourites.

Fiona Murtagh and that World Championship final

Ireland’s Fiona Murtagh had only been sculling for a year when she lined up in the final of the women’s single sculls at the Shanghai World Championships. She’d already proved herself as a sweep rower with an Olympic medal from Tokyo in the four. But a disappointing b-final finish in the pair at Paris had Murtagh doubting whether she should continue in the sport.

Knowing her strength and determination, coach Dominic Casey had little doubt that Murtagh could make a successful switch. Casey proved to be right. Murtagh led at the start of this year’s world championship final. She continued to lengthen her lead through the middle of the race and still had an edge in the home stretch when Great Britain’s Lauren Henry put on the sprint of her life. Murtagh held on to cross the finish line just 0.03 seconds ahead of Henry. What a finish!

Chris Bak – the most decorated Beach Sprint rower

As beach sprints head towards its Olympic debut, the sport is coming into its own with Christopher Bak of the United States now the most decorated beach sprint athlete of all time following the 2025 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals in Antalya. Bak’s success sheet may be a hard one to top. Since his first beach sprint event in 2021 he’s secured four golds, one silver and a bronze.

Nobody has won more gold medals than Bak, and he is level with Tunisian Hela Belhaje Mohamed in terms of number of medals.

This year he went back-to-back in the men’s solo with the Antalya final a 26-second margin win against Ander Martin of Spain.

Bak never takes a title for granted and has had his fair share of losses. He says, “the title is borrowed” and Bak will be back to defend it in the future.

Classic Sprints joins the World Rowing fold

The 2025 World Rowing Championships in Shanghai has been hailed as a landmark success for the sport, with athletes, fans and officials praising both the scale of delivery and the enthusiastic embrace of rowing by one of the world’s most vibrant cities.

Building on the momentum of the success in Shanghai, China World Rowing is bringing to the world the World Rowing Sprints.

This international elite event, the World Rowing Shanghai Sprints, is set for September 2026. The format sees 88 athletes from the eight best teams in the world, competing across four boat classes in a fast-paced, knockout-format regatta. Races will take place over a 500m, two-lane course on a highly iconic waterway in the heart of the city, delivering an intense sprint-style classic rowing showcase at the highest levels.

Mixing it up in the mixed boat Shanghai debut

The 2025 World Rowing Championships in Shanghai saw the amazing debut at a world championship event of mixed gender boats.

The championships featured, for the first time ever, the mixed eight and the mixed double sculls. Ten nations entered crews in mixed eight, including Hong Kong China. It is the first time ever that Hong Kong China entered an eight of any type in any World Rowing event. Overall Romania won the eight with Italy in second and New Zealand in third.

The mixed double was won by Ireland’s Fintan McCarthy and Margaret Cremen with the Netherlands taking silver and Switzerland bronze.

VERSA challenge in Singapore

The World Rowing Versa Challenge – Indoor Rowing’s premier multi-event championship – arrived in Asia for the first time. Hosted by Singapore, top athletes from around the world competed across five intense events. Competitors demonstrated extraordinary power, versatility, and endurance with the Charlotte Dixon (Great Britain) being crowned the women’s champion and Anders Edquist (Sweden) taking the men’s crown.

The event showcased the evolution of elite Indoor/Connected Rowing and delivered a world-class spectator experience to the region.

It played out alongside the massive public activation of Super60 with Singaporeans jumping in the erg and trying to clock their best time to qualify for the Super60 finals.