Great Britain’s U19 men’s eight won a fourth consecutive U19 world title in Plovdiv, clocking 5:33.84 to finish just 0.41 seconds outside the world-best time.
The British crew beat the United States by 2.62 seconds in Sunday’s A final, with Germany another 0.76 seconds back in bronze. The result gave Britain five medals, putting it fourth on the medal table with one gold, one bronze and three silvers.
Britain controls the final
The British JM8+ led the A-final from the opening strokes, reaching 500 metres in 1:22.17, only 0.16 seconds ahead of Germany. The margin grew through the middle kilometre as the leading two crews pulled away from the rest of the field.
At halfway, Britain held a lead of 0.82 seconds over Germany and 2.85 over the United States. stroke Jonathan Miles and his crew then extended their lead during the third quarter, reaching 1,500 metres 3.01 seconds clear of Germany.
The United States produced the fastest final 500 metres, moving past Germany to claim silver, while Britain held its lead. Britain’s 5:33.84 winning time was more than 11 seconds quicker than sixth-placed Italy.
The curse of Plovdiv? It could have been an ominous location for the Brits as Plovdiv hosted the 2021 World Rowing Junior Championships, which the British missed due to their team management’s Covid policy. With the exception of 2021 and the cancelled 2020 World Rowing Junior Championships, the last time the British JM8+ missed the podium was in 2015.
The victory extended Britain’s run of men’s eight titles in 2026. Great Britain had already won the event at the J16 GB France Match before taking another title at the U23 World Rowing Championships.
Women’s eight holds bronze
Great Britain’s women’s eight added bronze after Romania moved through early leader Germany around 600 metres and went on to take gold. Britain settled into third, resisted pressure from Italy during the third 500 metres and lifted its pace with 400 metres remaining.
The crew consisted of Hannah Palin, Freya Coupe, Florence Grose, Elayna Yap, Mia Tans, Annunciata Ings, Aaliyah Hall, Alice Dargue, and cox Charlie Watkins.
Five medals in Plovdiv
The two eights medals followed Britain’s three silvers on Saturday. Quinn Mosley and Alfie Webb finished second in the men’s double after Estonia came from fourth place to win by 0.6 seconds. Britain also took silver behind Romania in the women’s four, while the men’s four finished second to Spain.
“Today has been a fantastic end to a strong weekend of racing by our team,” Great Britain’s U19 team manager John Layng said after the finals, crediting club coaches and noting the depth of Britain’s U19 programmes. “To end the racing by winning medals in both eights events was the icing on the cake.” The championship ran from 6 to 9 August, following an opening programme featuring 660 athletes from 55 nations.
