• What is under 23 rowing?

    To be an Under-23 rower, you must be 22 or under for the whole racing season, from the first national trials held in October to the World Under-23 Championships in July. Under-23 rowers tend to be rowers who are too old to race as juniors but are still in need of further development before they can rank amongst senior rowers competing at the Olympic Games and the senior World Rowing Championships.

    Under-23 rowers compete at the national senior trials held throughout the racing year but are selected and ranked for international under-23 rowing on the basis of their age. Many under-23 rowers experience this development at university, institutions at the core of our sport. There are a number of university championships over various distances throughout the year which test Under-23 rowers’ endurance, strength, speed and power.

    The competing boats from universities secure points dependent on the position they finish in national university championships. From this point-scoring system, universities are nationally ranked against each other. From these competitions, the best university athletes can be selected for the World University Rowing Championships, staged every two years. Many elite rowers first started rowing at university.