Coastal Champs take on Challenge Prince Albert II

Some of the top names in international coastal rowing are heading to Monaco this coming weekend for the 2024 Challenge Prince Albert II. The competition, which features two events – a 4000m endurance race and a 500m harbour sprint – will take place on 30 November and 1 December.

Twenty-four crews, all mixed coxed quadruple sculls, will take to the Monegasque waters.

Many boat manufacturers will be well represented; Filippi, Kanghua, Ruebenetti, and Swift all have boats stacked with international medallists from both Beach Sprints and Coastal events.

Filippi has Chris Bak (2x Men’s Solo World Beach Sprint Champion), Davide Mumolo (2024 Men’s Solo Coastal Silver medallist), the Lobnig sisters (2024 Women’s Double Coastal silver medallist, with Magdalena Lobnig the 2024 Women’s Solo World Beach Sprint Champion), and coxed by Alvaro Miralles in their ‘Performance’ Crew, while their ‘Elite’ crew is made up of Esther Briz and Ander Martin (2x Beach Sprint and 2x Coastal Mixed Double World Champions), Monika Dukarska (2x Women’s Solo Coastal World Champion), Gonzalo Garcia Ferrero and cox Sergio Lopez (silver medallists in the 2024 Men’s Coxed Quad).

Kanghua’s Team ‘Galaxy’ boasts 2x World Beach Sprint Champion in the Men’s Solo, Adrian Miramon Quiroga, as well as 2x medallists in the Coastal Women’s Double, Janneke van der Meulen and Karien Robbers. They are completed by a relatively coastal newcomer, Jan van der Bij, who came away from the Beach Sprint and Coastal Championships in 2024 with two medals in the quadruple sculls, and cox Felipe Mendez Tome, who knows his way around the waves.

Martino Goretti, who holds many medals from lightweight classic rowing, and is a two time Olympian is at the heart of Team Rubenetti with fellow countryman Simone Martini. The duo are joined by Olympians Sophie Souwer (NED) and Kiri English-Hawke, who both won gold in the women’s quadruple sculls at the 2024 World Rowing Coastal Championships. The boat will be coxed by Andrea Riva.

Swift’s ‘International’ Crew is composed of two thirds of the women’s solo podium from the 2024 World Rowing Coastal Championships – Jessica Berra (silver, FRA) and Eeva Karpinnen (bronze, FIN), as well as Eskil Borgh, who is a 4x medallist in the men’s double at the World Rowing Coastal Championships. Completing the boat are cox Ryan Glymond and Charles Cousins, who both contributed to Great Britain’s first senior World Beach Sprint title this past autumn in the CMix4x+.

A few well known classic rowers seem to also be dipping their oars into the coastal world – Croatia’s Valent Sinkovic (3x Olympic Champion) will be joined by teammate Ivana Jurkovic in the ‘Team Croatia’ boat. On the Italian side, the silver medallists in the lightweight men’s double sculls from Paris 2024 – Gabriel Soares and Stefano Oppo – will both be competing, but in competing boats. Two time Olympian from Austria, Louisa Altenhuber, will join a boat full of coastal experience in her fellow country mates.