Romania won all three titles in the eight events of the 2026 European Rowing Championships, completing a strong finish to a weather-disrupted regatta in Varese. Early on Sunday morning a severe storm forced the evacuation of Lago di Varese and temporarily suspended all activity on the third and final day of the championships. A hastily rescheduled programme with compressed medal ceremonies ensured all the races were completed after the lightning had passed and allowed the athletes to catch their return flights without too much disruption.
2026 European Rowing Championships
The men’s and women’s crews took gold before Romania won the inaugural European mixed eight. Its rowers also claimed the first mixed double sculls title as the championships concluded on Sunday, 2 August, with medals decided across 11 events.
Four established champions held their ground amid the condensed programme. Great Britain’s Lauren Henry retained the women’s single sculls title, Benjamin Pritchard won the PR1 men’s single again, Germany’s Oliver Zeidler prevailed in the men’s single and Ukraine’s Anna Sheremet defended her PR1 women’s single crown.
Romania Controls the Eights
Germany attacked the men’s eight final and retained a narrow advantage at halfway, with Romania only 0.08 seconds behind. The race changed in the third quarter as Romania edged ahead, then resisted Germany during a tightly packed sprint to the line. Italy took bronze in front of the home support.
Romania reached the women’s eight final after going fastest in the preliminary race with a European Best Time. The crew built a length’s lead during the second quarter and stayed in front, finishing 5.43 seconds ahead of Great Britain. Italy took bronze, with Germany the only crew outside the medals.
The result gave Simona Radiș and Adriana Adam their second titles of the championships after they won the women’s pair on Saturday. Romania had swept both pair events on the opening finals day.
A third Romanian victory followed in the mixed eight, one of two boat classes making their European Championship debuts. Olympic champion Marian Enache and Iulia-Liliana Balauca (ROU) also won the new mixed double sculls event. Romania topped the medal table and left Varese with both inaugural mixed titles.
2026 European Rowing Championships
Henry and Pritchard Deliver for Britain
Henry, the Paris 2024 Olympic champion in the women’s quadruple sculls, had posted the fastest time in the heats and semi-finals. In the final, she moved through the field during the second half before taking control and retaining her European title in the single.
Pritchard faced sustained pressure in the PR1 men’s single. The reigning Paralympic champion started quickly, but Italy’s Giacomo Perini moved narrowly ahead before 500m. Pritchard recovered the lead and answered Perini’s subsequent attacks, with Ukraine’s Roman Polianskyi finishing third on the water. After the race the Israel team lodged a protest arguing that Polianskyi’s required PR1 strapping had not been fixed properly. Two hours later World Rowing upheld the protest, relegated the Ukrainian to last place, and gave bronze to Scmuel Daniel (ISR).
Pritchard dedicated the victory to his coach Andrew Williams’s family after Williams’s father died earlier in the week.
“The reason why this is so special is that my coach on the River Tawe, Andrew Williams, his father passed away on Tuesday,” Pritchard said after the race. “This was done for the Williams family and for everything they do for me.”
Britain finished third on the medal table with five golds and one silver. Its women’s eight supplied the silver, while the men’s team selected for the World Championships was absent from Varese for an altitude camp in Silvretta.
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
1/1
Drag
Sheremet and Zeidler Retain Their Titles
Sheremet led the PR1 women’s single from the opening stages and stayed clear as the contest for silver developed behind her. Eva Mol of the Netherlands resisted Switzerland’s Claire Ghiringhelli to finish second.
Olympic champion Zeidler retained the men’s single title, adding another European gold to his record. In the lightweight singles, Greece’s Petros Gkaidatzis moved ahead early and controlled the men’s final, while Maria Zhovner, competing as an Individual Neutral Athlete, won the women’s event.
The Varese championships ran from 31 July to 2 August. The 2026 World Rowing Championships follow in the Netherlands from 24 to 30 August.
