World Rowing paves the way for Beach Sprint Rowing at LA28 with attribution of World Championships to Brazil and China for 2025 and 2026

The World Rowing Council has decided to attribute the 2025 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and the 2026 World Rowing Coastal Championships & Beach Sprint Finals to Qingdao, China.

2025 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals go to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Following the recommendations of World Rowing’s Coastal Rowing Commission, the Council decided to attribute the event to the coastal city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The event will take place 23 to 26 October 2025, and will mark the first World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals to take place in the Americas, as well as in the Southern Hemisphere.

“The competition will take place along the iconic beaches of Rio de Janeiro, and the exciting nature of Beach Sprint Rowing will fit perfectly in this environment. We are very much looking forward to working with the organising committee and the Brazilian Rowing Federation to make this event memorable” said World Rowing President Jean-Christophe Rolland.

A simultaneous decision was made to not allocate the World Rowing Coastal Championships for 2025. This event will next take place in 2026. Athletes will be able to compete in their Continental Coastal Championships, that will be announced shortly. Other coastal events can be found on the World Rowing website Calendar.

2026 World Rowing Coastal Championships & Beach Sprint Finals confirmed in Qingdao, China

The World Rowing Council also decided to allocate the 2026 World Rowing Coastal Championships & Beach Sprint Finals to Qingdao, China. The exact dates for the events are to be determined.

The port city of Qingdao, located in the province of Shandong, Host City of Olympic Sailing in 2008, recently unveiled their new Coastal Rowing Sports Base. The 2026 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals will mark the second time the event is held in China, after the first ever World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals were held in Shenzen in 2019. Since then, the sport has grown exponentially worldwide and has been included in the Olympic Programme.

“We are thrilled to be returning to China for the Beach Sprint Finals and Coastal Championships, said World Rowing President Jean-Christophe Rolland. The inaugural Beach Sprint Finals were held in Shenzen in 2019, and it is only fitting that we return to China in 2026, now that the discipline is Olympic.”

The discipline of Beach Sprint Rowing is set to make its Olympic debut at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. For the first time, Rowing will be featured in two different disciplines, both set to be showcased at the heart of the Olympic Games. Beach Sprint Rowing has also been included on the programme for the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal.

World Rowing has embarked on an ambitious, global growth strategy for the discipline, underpinned by increased investments across geographies and participation in high-profile multisport events. That global growth strategy will continue with the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.