Germany swept the first mixed double sculls and mixed eight titles as six A-finals closed the 2026 World Rowing Under 19 Championships in Plovdiv on Sunday.
Great Britain secured a fourth consecutive men’s eight crown, while Romania won the women’s eight. Italy’s Alizee Ribolzi and Greece’s Iason Mouselimis took the women’s and men’s single sculls titles respectively.
Germany sweep the new mixed events
Anori Laurin Benz and Kaya Woelk won Germany the inaugural U19 mixed double sculls final.
The German combination moved ahead early but came under pressure as Italy’s Roberta Romani and Elia Bressan accelerated towards the finish. Benz and Woelk protected their advantage to take gold, leaving the Italians with silver. Marton Mezosi and Janka Demko secured bronze for Hungary, with Romania fourth ahead of Moldova and Ukraine.
Germany completed the sweep by winning the final race of the championships, the mixed eight. Each crew contained four male and four female rowers, although nations adopted different seat arrangements when combining athletes from the established boat classes.
Charlotte Paulat stroked the German eight, which found enough length and speed to pull clear. Romania took silver, while the scratch United States eight recovered from disappointment in Saturday’s fours to collect bronze. Italy finished fourth.
Britain’s men’s eight make it four
Great Britain arrived in the men’s eight final with the fastest qualifying time and controlled the race from the opening quarter. The defending champions built their advantage over Germany through 1,500 metres, then consolidated it over the closing 500 metres.
The United States came through from an outside lane to pass Germany for silver. Germany took bronze, ahead of Croatia, Romania and Italy.
Laszlo Earle, George Petrow, Jack Holden, Aiden Hughes, Monty Sutherland, Paul Turner, Jacopo Tans and Jonathan Miles, coxed by Nathanial Barnes, stopped the clock at 5:33.84. That left Britain just 0.41 seconds outside the World Best Time.
The result continued a strong season for British men’s eights, following victories at the J16 GB France Match and the Under 23 World Rowing Championships. Britain finished fourth on the championship medal table with five medals, including three silvers won on Saturday.
The American silver was the country’s first medal of the regatta. Charlie Winder was the only returning athlete from the US crew that finished second-last at the 2025 championships.
Ribolzi and Mouselimis control the singles
Italy’s Alizee Ribolzi took command of the women’s single sculls after approximately 800 metres and opened a clear margin before the finish. Switzerland’s Olivia Leunig pulled away from the remaining challengers to claim silver.
Bronze was decided by one-hundredth of a second. Greece’s Paschalina Mouratidou edged Germany’s Leoni Hauschild, while Viktoryia Halaskok finished fifth as an Individual Neutral Athlete. China’s Yufei Guan, the youngest athlete in the field at 16, placed sixth.
In the men’s single, European champion Iason Mouselimis added the world title to his 2026 record. The Greek sculler established his decisive lead in the closing stages as Norway’s Raphael Arkadiusz Pintsch pursued him to the line. Pintsch collected silver and Belgium’s Sepp Driesen took bronze.
Romania hold off Germany
Romania moved ahead of Germany during the second quarter of the women’s eight final and remained in front through the finish. Germany reduced the deficit enough to establish overlap but could not complete the comeback.
Great Britain resisted Italy’s challenge for bronze, adding a fifth medal to its championship total. The United States placed fifth.
Germany and Romania finished level at the top of the medal table with six medals apiece and identical medal breakdowns. Eight nations won at least one gold during the championships.
Plovdiv will again host the U19 championships from 27–31 July 2027, with the Under 23 regatta running from 28 July to 1 August. Athletes from over 60 nations will compete, with more than 1,000 taking part across the two events. See you next year Plovdiv.
