Day six at Vaires-sur-Marne saw the Netherlands remain at the top of the medal table by adding a women’s four gold and men’s double silver. Great Britain and New Zealand won a hat-trick of Olympic medals, one of each colour for the Kiwis. Two sets of Kiwi sisters claimed medals in the double (gold) and fours (bronze), so it was a good day for the Gowler and Spoors families.
USA won their first men’s gold medal since 2004, this one coming in the men’s four. They were pushed hard by the New Zealanders. Great Britain secured silver and bronze in their respective women’s and men’s fours, and a bronze in the women’s double. Mum-strength was on display from Lucy Spoors (NZL), Brooke Francis (NZL), Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne (GBR), and Helen Glover (GBR) with their children cheering from the stands.
Simona Radis and Ancuta Bodnar (ROU) failed to defend their Tokyo title in the double but compete again on Saturday in the women’s eight. From the outside lane, Andrei Sebastian Cornea and Marian Florian Enache surprised many to claim Romania’s first ever men’s Olympic sculling medal, a gold in the men’s double. Philip Doyle and Daire Lynch (IRL M2x) became Ireland’s first ever openweight men’s Olympic medallists.