2025 World Rowing Championships: Women's Crews to Watch

The best women’s crews from 56 nations will gather for the 2025 World Rowing Championships in Shanghai, China, on 21 September.

Here are the women’s crews to watch.

Women’s Pair (W2-)

Entries: 16
Reigning world champions: Ymkje Clevering, Veronique Meester (NED)
Reigning Olympic champions: Ymkje Clevering, Veronique Meester (NED)

With five previous world and three Olympic titles to their names, European champions Maria Magdalena Rusu and Simona Radis (Romania) look like the outstanding crew in the women’s pair field. Crewmates in the world and Olympic champion women’s eight, they have formed a new partnership in the pair this season and dominated at the European Rowing Championships and the 2025 World Rowing Cup Lucerne. But there are a number of other exciting combinations also set to fight it out for the medals.

Italy’s Laura Meriano and Alice Codato took European silver and won 2025 World Rowing Cup Varese, which Romania sat out. Anna Santruckova and Pavlina Flamikova (Czechia) have had a solid season with podium finishes at both World Rowing Cups, giving them momentum to build from. Also look out for Chile’s Abraham sisters, one of the most experienced combinations in the pair; the Danish under 23 bronze medallists Clara Hornnaess and Frida Foldager; Serbian pair Jovana Arsic and Elena Orjanbinskaja; and the new Swiss pair of Lisa Loetscher and Celia Dupre.

Women’s Double Sculls (W2x)

Entries: 12
Reigning world champions: Ancuta Bodnar, Simona Radis (ROU)
Reigning Olympic champions: Brooke Francis, Lucy Spoors (NZL)

The women’s double sculls is the host nation’s best chance of a gold medal at the 2025 World Rowing Championships. In the wake of their disappointing Paris Olympiad in the women’s quadruple sculls, Chen Yunxia and Zhang Ling have formed an impressive doubles partnership, winning both World Rowing Cups earlier this year.

But there is tons of quality in the chasing pack. France’s Elodie Ravera Scaramozzino and Emma Lunatti missed the medals at their home Olympics, but pressed the Chinese close in Lucerne back in June. In Varese, it was the formidable Dutch combination of Roos de Jong and Benthe Boonstra who took silver; de Jong is also reigning European champion in this event. Lucerne bronze medallists Greece are also certainly contenders – Evangelia Anastasiadou and Olympic lightweight double sculls bronze medallist Zoi Fitsiou beat the Dutch in a thrilling final to the Stonor Challenge Trophy at Henley Royal Regatta.

Women’s Four (W4-)

Entries: 13
Reigning world champions: Marloes Oldenburg, Hermine Drenth, Tinka Offereins, Benthe Boonstra (NED)
Reigning Olympic champions: Marloes Oldenburg, Hermine Drenth, Tinka Offereins, Benthe Boonstra (NED)

Will the women’s four title return to the Netherlands? There is no doubt that the 2025 Dutch crew is a powerful unit, consisting of reigning women’s pair champion Ymkje Clevering and reigning women’s four champions Hermine Drenth and Tinka Offereins, plus Nika Vos. Clevering, Offereins and Vos won the 2025 European Rowing Championships in this event.

Several other nations have reached the podium in the four this year. Romania have also made one change to their European silver-medal winning crew, bringing in Geanina Juncanariu alongside the impressive trio of Ancuta Bodnar, Adriana Adam and Amalia Beres. The USA won both 2025 World Rowing Cups in the women’s four, and field the same line-up that raced in Varese in Shanghai. European bronze medallists Great Britain have also had some changes: Lauren Irwin and Heidi Long are now joined by fellow Olympic women’s eight bronze medallist Eve Stewart, alongside European women’s pair bronze medallist Megan Slabbert. But Australia, third in Lucerne, have stuck with the same crew, and will be hoping consistency could breed success.

Women’s Single Sculls (W1x)

Entries: 20
Reigning world champion: Karolien Florijn (NED)
Reigning Olympic champion: Karolien Florijn (NED)

There is one outstanding sculler this season who will arrive in Shanghai tipped for gold: Great Britain’s Lauren Henry. Olympic and world champion in the women’s quadruple sculls, the 23-year-old’s switch to the single this year has been wildly successful with victory at the 2025 European Rowing Championships and at both World Rowing Cups, all in blisteringly fast times. But in Lucerne the field did close up on her a little, and it is certain they will have been working hard in the break to narrow it further.

Ireland’s Fiona Murtagh took second behind Henry at the European Rowing Championships and in Lucerne, with Frida Sangaard Nielsen of Denmark third on both occasions. Olympic bronze medallist Viktorija Senkute (Lithuania) has also been in the mix, with two fifth places so far in 2025, but she has shown in the past she has the speed to be among the best. The same can be said of former under 23 world champion Alexandra Foester (Germany), and Tokyo 2020 Olympic silver medallist Anna Prakaten (Uzbekistan). Also racing in Shanghai in her senior debut is the 2025 under 23 bronze medallist, Australia’s Romy Cantwell.

Women’s Quadruple Sculls (W4x)

Entries: 12
Reigning world champions: Lauren Henry, Hannah Scott, Lola Anderson, Georgina Brayshaw (GBR)
Reigning Olympic champions: Lauren Henry, Hannah Scott, Lola Anderson, Georgina Brayshaw (GBR)

So far in 2025, three different nations have won gold in the women’s quadruple sculls – suggesting that, as in the last few seasons, this could be one of the most exciting events on the programme. Great Britain became European champions in Plovdiv in May ahead of Germany and the Netherlands, and they have made one change to that crew, with Olympic and world champion Hannah Scott coming in to join Sarah McKay, Lola Anderson and Rebecca Wilde for her season debut. At the 2025 World Rowing Cup Varese, it was the Dutch crew who won, ahead of Germany; Germany then took gold in Lucerne, when both the Dutch and the British were absent.

Poland, Romania and Czechia have all picked up minor World Rowing Cup medals this year in this event. There are also some completely new contenders in the quad in Shanghai, with Canada, New Zealand and the USA entering crews in this event for the first time this season. Will the newcomers surprise?

Women’s Eight (W8+)

Entries: 10
Reigning world champions: Maria Magdalena Rusu, Roxana Anghel, Adriana Adam, Iuliana Buhus, Madalina Beres, Maria Lehaci, Ioana Vrinceanu, Simona Radis, Victoria Stefania Petreanu (c) (ROU)
Reigning Olympic champions: Maria Magdalena Rusu, Roxana Anghel, Ancuta Bodnar, Maria Lehaci, Adriana Adam, Amalia Beres, Ioana Vrinceanu, Simona Radis, Victoria Stefania Petreanu (c) (ROU)

Two crews in particular stand out in the deep women’s eight field for the 2025 World Rowing Championships: Great Britain and Romania. The British went back-to-back early in the season, with victories at both the 2025 European Rowing Championships and the World Rowing Cup Varese. They did not race the eight in Lucerne, opening the way for world and Olympic champions Romania to take the win. Five rowers and coxswain Victoria Petreanu from the Romanian crew that took top spot at Paris 2024 and in Belgrade in 2023 are selected for Shanghai and it is certainly going to be a thriller between these two outstanding boats.

The USA and Australia completed the podium at both World Rowing Cups, but the USA crew competing in Shanghai has been substantially reshaped with only three rowers and coxswain Nina Castagna still in the boat. That means they are unpredictable in an event in which the USA has always been strong. Meanwhile also keep an eye on Canada, coxed by double Olympic medallist Kristen Kit and stroked by Caileigh Filmer, who won silver with Kit in this event in Paris.

Lightweight Women’s Single Sculls (LW1x)

Entries: 19
Reigning world champion: Ionela Cozmiuc (ROU)

Mexican Kenia Lechuga won silver in the lightweight women’s double sculls behind Ireland’s Siobhan McCrohan at the 2023 World Rowing Championships, but based on her performances at the 2025 World Rowing Cups, this year might be her chance to become world champion and delight her substantial fanbase back home. Lechuga won gold in both Varese and Lucerne in impressive races. The other sculler in strong form earlier this season was Austrian Lara Tiefenthaler, who finished second to Lechuga at the World Cups after winning gold at the European Rowing Championships. Likely to also be racing for a place on the Shanghai podium are Norway’s Maia Lund, this year’s European silver medallist, and Mariia Zhovner (AIN), who won bronze in Plovdiv.

The dark horses in the field are Greece’s Dimitra Kontou and the USA’s Michelle Sechser. Kontou, Olympic bronze medallist in the lightweight women’s double sculls, has already won European silver in the women’s double sculls and became under 23 world champion in the same event in July; she followed those results up with gold in the lightweight single at the European Rowing Under 23 Championships earlier this month. Sechser, double Kontou’s age at 38 years old, makes her season debut in Shanghai. She is a three-time world medallist in the lightweight women’s double sculls, and could well add a single sculls medal to that collection.

Lightweight Women’s Double Sculls (LW2x)

Entries: 5
Reigning world champions: Emily Craig, Imogen Grant (GBR)
Reigning Olympic champions: Emily Craig, Imogen Grant (GBR)

None of the five crews entered in the lightweight women’s double sculls have so far raced this event this season, leaving the field wide open. Peru’s Palacios twins won silver at last year’s World Rowing Championships in the lightweight women’s pair, and both they and Tunisia’s Khadija Krimi and Selma Dhaouadi raced the lightweight double at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Tunisia has generally had the edge over Peru in the past. China, Hong Kong China, and Indonesia complete the field.