2026 World Rowing Championships: U.S. Boat-by-Boat Preview

The Gemini.com U.S. National Team is set to take on the world at the 2026 World Rowing Championships, August 24–30, at the Bosbaan in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The U.S. will race 19 boats, including the mixed double sculls and mixed eight, as the team looks to build on a strong 2026 international season.

The U.S. enters the championships with significant momentum after winning 23 medals across  World Rowing Cups II and III and claiming the Overall World Cup Points Trophy for the first time in program history. 

The 2026 roster combines veteran international experience with a new generation of U.S. athletes. Eleven Olympians and Paralympians return to the World Championships following the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, while U23 World Champions Sam Sullivan, Wilson Morton and Dahlia Levine are among those making their senior national team debuts. Both the men's and women's fours are composed entirely of athletes from the 2024 Olympic team.

At last year's World Championships in Shanghai, the U.S. won four medals, including world titles in the women's four and lightweight women's single sculls, as well as bronze medals in the women's pair and men's eight.

Here is a boat-by-boat look at the U.S. crews heading to Amsterdam.

Men's Single Sculls

Sam Melvin (Huntington Beach, Calif.)

Melvin will make his return to the senior World Championships in the men's single sculls after moving from the lightweight ranks to heavyweight competition in 2025. A six-time national team member at the U23 and senior levels, Melvin won gold at World Cup II and bronze at World Cup III this summer in the single sculls. 

He enters an especially competitive men's single field. Reigning Olympic champion Oliver Zeidler of Germany won both World Cups he entered this season, while reigning world champion Stefanos Ntouskos of Greece will look to defend his title. 

Women's Single Sculls

Lauren O'Connor (Belleville, Wis.)

O'Connor will race the women's single sculls at her second senior World Championships after competing in the event at the 2025 World Championships. A four-time national team member, she also competed in the women's quadruple sculls at the 2023 World Championships and the 2024 Olympic Games, where her crew finished ninth overall.

O'Connor will face a loaded field led by reigning Olympic champion Karolien Florijn of the Netherlands, reigning world champion Fiona Murtagh of Ireland and two-time 2026 World Cup winner Lauren Henry of Great Britain. 

Lightweight Men's Single Sculls

Justin Schmidt (Westport, Conn.)

Schmidt returns to the lightweight men's single sculls after making his senior World Championships debut in 2025. He previously finished fourth in the lightweight single sculls at the 2022 U23 World Championships.

The 2026 field includes athletes with significant international experience, including Uruguay's Felipe Kluver and Germany's Fabio Kress. Schmidt is coming off recent success this summer, having won bronze in the event at World Cup III. 

Lightweight Women's Single Sculls

Claire Friedlander (Narberth, Pa.)

Friedlander will represent the U.S. in the lightweight women’s single sculls in Amsterdam, marking her senior national team debut after previously competing on the U23 team. The U.S. has a strong recent history in this event, having won the world title in Shanghai last year.

Lightweight Men's Double Sculls

Jamie Copus (Winnetka, Ill.)

Sean Richardson (Beverly, Mass.)

Copus and Richardson will team up in the lightweight men's double sculls. Copus has competed for the U.S. and Great Britain on 14 national teams and has won four World Championship medals. Richardson is making his third national team, having previously competed on the senior and Pan American Games teams. The crew will face an international field featuring several experienced combinations of talented lightweight rowers. 

Men's Pair

Samuel Halbert (Redmond, Wash.)

Blake Vogel (Mars, Pa.)

Halbert and Vogel will make their senior World Championships debut as a pair. Both athletes competed on the U23 national team, with Vogel earning silver and bronze medals. Halbert won the U23 World Championship title in the eight in 2018 and took silver in 2019. 

The men's pair is expected to feature one of the deepest fields in Amsterdam. New Zealand's reigning world champions Oliver Welch and Benjamin Taylor return after a dominant 2026 World Cup campaign, while Australia's World Cup III-winning combination of Angus Dawson and Alex Hill will provide another major challenge.

Women's Pair

Regina Salmons (Methuen, Mass.)

Mia Levy (Des Moines, Iowa)

After winning World Rowing Cup III in Lucerne, Levy and Salmons arrive in Amsterdam with one of the U.S. team's strongest opportunities to contend for a medal. Levy returns to the senior national team, having raced in the eight in 2025. Salmons, a two-time Olympian, returns to the senior national team for the first time since racing at the 2024 Olympic Games.

The duo has only raced together for one season, but their World Cup victory established them as legitimate contenders heading into the World Championships. The reigning world champions from Romania, Czechia, and Chile's Abraham sisters are among the crews expected to challenge for the podium.

Men's Double Sculls

Willem Drescher (Gainesville, Va.)

James Fetter (Palo Alto, Calif.)

Drescher and Fetter will represent the U.S. in the men's double sculls. Drescher served as an alternate on last year’s squad. Fetter is making his senior national team debut, after previously racing on the U23 team in the single sculls and quadruple sculls. 

They will face a field featuring the reigning Olympic champions from Romania, reigning world champions Poland and 2026 World Cup III winners Aaron Andries and Tibo Vyvey of Belgium. Croatia's legendary Sinkovic brothers also return to the event, making the men's double one of the most experienced fields in Amsterdam.

Women's Double Sculls

Isa Darvin (Madison, Wis.)

Grace Joyce (Northfield, Ill.)

Darvin and Joyce will race together in the women's double sculls again, having previously represented the U.S. in this event last year, and will look to improve on their eighth-place finish from 2025. 

Joyce competed at the 2024 Olympic Games in the women's quadruple sculls, while Darvin is competing on her third second national team.

The Netherlands' Roos de Jong and Benthe Boonstra enter as both reigning world champions and 2026 World Cup III winners. Italy, Switzerland and China are also expected to challenge for the podium.

PR2 Mixed Double Sculls

Nat Vorel (Oklahoma City, Okla.)

Chance Quarry (Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.)

Quarry and Vorel will represent the U.S. in the PR2 mixed double sculls. The duo won the PR2 mixed double sculls at the 2026 Canadian Henley this summer. Both athletes are relatively new to rowing, with Vorel bringing an impressive background in adaptive sports. A talented Para swimmer and climber, Vorel is a five-time Para Climbing National Champion.

The event features a deep international field, including the reigning world champions from China and the reigning Paralympic champions from Great Britain. Nearly the entire 2025 World Championship final field returns to Amsterdam, setting up another competitive battle for the podium.

Men's Four

Gus Rodriguez (Rye, N.Y.)

Peter Chatain (Winnetka, Ill.)

Chris Carlson (Bedford, N.H.)

Pieter Quinton (Portland, Ore.)

The U.S. men's four is composed entirely of athletes from the 2024 Olympic team. Quinton and Rodriguez are returning to the event after competing in the men's four at the 2025 World Championships; Carlson raced in the quadruple sculls in 2025, finishing fourth overall. Carlson, Chatain and Quinton also won bronze in the men’s eight at the 2024 Olympic Games.

The U.S. will face a strong international field led by reigning world champions Great Britain, which won World Cup I and World Cup III this season. Romania, the Netherlands, China and France will also be among the crews challenging for the medals.

Women's Four

Molly Bruggeman (Dayton, Ohio)

Azja Czajkowski (Imperial Beach, Calif.)

Teal Cohen (Dallas, Texas)

Kate Knifton (Austin, Texas)

The reigning world champions return to Amsterdam with a World Cup victory under their belts. The crew is composed entirely of 2024 Olympians, with Knifton stroking the four for the third year in a row.

This U.S. women's four won World Cup III in Lucerne with Bruggeman joining returning world champions Cohen, Czajkowski and Knifton. Bruggeman returns to the senior team for the first time since the 2024 Olympics. The crew will look to defend the world title the U.S. won in Shanghai last year. 

The field will be led by the United States and reigning Olympic champions the Netherlands, with Great Britain, New Zealand, Australia, Italy and Romania all capable of challenging for a podium spot. 

PR3 Mixed Four with Coxswain

Gabriella Bigler (San Diego, Calif.)

Skylar Dahl (Minneapolis, Minn.)

Max Allemeier (Marietta, Ga.)

Alex Flynn (Wilmington, Mass.)

Hannah Diaz, coxswain (Seattle, Wash.)

The U.S. PR3 mixed four features a combination of returning international experience and new faces, including Paralympic silver medalists Dahl and Flynn, who are returning to the World Championships for the first time since the 2024 Paralympic Games. Allemeier previously was an alternate for the 2024 Games and raced in the four in 2025; Bigler makes her senior team debut. 

The U.S. will look to challenge Great Britain, which has established a run of success in the PR3 mixed four. The U.S. PR3 mixed four with coxswain won gold at World Cup III this summer. 

Men's Quadruple Sculls

James Wright (Philadelphia, Pa.)

Jacob Plihal (Vashon Island, Wash.)

Cedar Cunningham (Renton, Wash.)

Ben Davison (Inverness, Fla.)

The U.S. men's quad brings together a mix of Olympic experience and emerging talent. Davison returns for his first world championships since the 2024 Olympics, having previously finished fourth in the double sculls at the Games. Plihal finished 13th in the single sculls at the 2024 Games and has been competing since in multiple sculling categories. He raced with Cunningham in last year’s quadruple sculls, finishing fourth overall. Wright makes his senior World Championships debut, having previously competed on the U19 and U23 teams. Plihal won medals at both World Cups this summer, taking silver in the single sculls and bronze in the double sculls with Cunningham. 

The event features the reigning world champions from Italy and reigning Olympic champions the Netherlands. Great Britain enters as the 2026 World Cup III winner, while Germany also has strong results this season.

Women's Quadruple Sculls

Kristi Wagner (Weston, Mass.)

Evan Park (Bend, Ore.)

Sophia Vitas (Franklin, Wis.)

Emily Kallfelz (Jamestown, R.I.)

The women's quad features four athletes with significant international experience, including Olympic experience from Kallfelz, Vitas, and Wagner. All three are returning to the senior national team after representing the U.S. at the 2024 Olympic Games. Vitas and Kallfelz took silver in the double sculls at World Cup III, with Park taking bronze in the same race. Kallfelz, Park and Vitas won gold in the quadruple sculls at the 2026 World Cup II, while Wagner took silver in the double sculls. 

The U.S. crew will face a field led by reigning world champions the Netherlands and reigning Olympic champions Great Britain. Germany has also been among the fastest crews of the 2026 season, while the Netherlands will have the advantage of racing on home water.

Men's Eight

Mike Herman (Washington, D.C)

Charles Fargo (Winnetka, Ill.)

Wilson Morton (Summit, N.J.)

Billy Bender (Norwich, Vt.)

Madison Molitor (Moses Lake, Wash.)

Sam Sullivan (Boston, Mass.)

Nate Phelps (Ridgefield, Conn.)

Josh Diggons (Ocean City, N.J.)

Rachel Rane, coxswain (Glencoe, Ill.)

The men's eight combines veteran experience with several athletes making their senior national team debuts. Bender, Herman, Molitor and Phelps return after previous senior international experience, while Morton and Sullivan are among the U23 World Champions making their senior World Championships debuts. Josh Diggons was an alternate for last year’s team; he won the U23 World Championship in the men’s coxed four in 2024. Bender, Herman, and Molitor won bronze in the eight at last year’s world championships. Phelps previously raced in the quadruple sculls that finished fourth in 2025. 

The Dutch enter as reigning world champions and 2026 World Cup III winners, while Great Britain returns as reigning Olympic champions. Italy, Germany, Australia and Romania are also expected to challenge for the A Final and medals.

Women's Eight

Dahlia Levine (Ardmore, Pa.)

Megan Lee (Natick, Mass.)

Charlotte Buck (Nyack, N.Y.)

Jess Thoennes (Highlands Ranch, Colo.)

Claire Collins (McLean, Va.)

Camille VanderMeer (Elmira, N.Y.)

Alexandria Vallancey-Martinson (Corvallis, Ore.)

Etta Carpender (Denver, Colo.)

Nina Castagna, coxswain (Cincinnati, Ohio)

The U.S. women's eight features a mix of Olympic veterans and emerging athletes, including Collins, Buck, Castagna and Thoennes, who bring Olympic experience to Amsterdam. VanderMeer won the world championship in the four at last year’s event. Thoennes won bronze in the pair in 2025. Lee and Vallancey-Martinson raced in last year’s eight at the world championships. Levine is making her senior national team debut this year after winning the U23 World Championships in the eight in 2023. 

The U.S. eight won gold and bronze at the World Cups this summer and will look to return to the podium at the World Championships. The Netherlands enters as reigning world champion, while Great Britain won World Cup III in Lucerne and Australia took silver at the same regatta. Romania, the 2026 European champion, also remains a major medal threat.

With a combination of returning champions, Olympic and Paralympic veterans and athletes beginning their senior national team careers, the U.S. team enters the 2026 World Rowing Championships with momentum. The team will also compete in the mixed double sculls and mixed eight.

Racing begins Monday, August 24, with the 2026 World Rowing Championships continuing through August 30 at the Bosbaan in Amsterdam. Follow the results and schedule here. Livestream coverage will be available on YouTube and Overnght. 

USRowing would like to thank Filippi Lido, the Official Boat Supplier for the U.S. Senior and Para Rowing National Teams. Under the agreement, Filippi is providing USRowing a fleet of boats for international competitions, including the World Rowing Cup regattas, World Rowing Championships, Olympic Games, and Paralympic Games, as well as a domestic training fleet for the USRowing Training Centers.