U23 Trials Underway in Sarasota

SARASOTA, Fla. – USRowing's Under 23 World Championships Trials got underway with time trials in seven events on Monday at Nathan Benderson Park.

In the women's single sculls, Green Racing Project's Anna Matthes (Cambridge, Mass.) won the time trial by nearly 12 seconds over Oak Neck Academy's Elle Barry. Matthes finished with a time of 7:31.87. She was a member of the 2017 Under 19 National Team, finishing fifth in the quadruple sculls at the World Rowing Junior Championships that year. Barry won the women's single this past Sunday at the 2021 USRowing Youth National Championships and is stepping up in class at this week's trials. Matthes will be the top seed in tomorrow's final.

Oak Neck Academy's Nicholas Aronow (Laurel Hollow, N.Y.), who represented the U.S. in the single sculls at the 2019 World Rowing Junior Championships, won the time trial of the lightweight men's single sculls. Aronow finished nearly 11 seconds ahead of Justin Schmidt. As the only event with more than six entries, the scullers will race in heats and repechages tomorrow, followed by their final on Wednesday.

Green Racing Project's Elaine Tierney (West Chester, Pa.) and Emily Molins (Wilmette, Ill.) posted the fastest time in the lightweight women's double sculls time trial on Monday afternoon by 11 seconds. Molins won a silver medal in the lightweight women's pair at the 2019 World Rowing Under 23 Championships in Sarasota. Tierney and Molins enter tomorrow's final as the top seed.

In the lightweight men's pair, Riverside Boat Club's Collin Hay (Shrewsbury, Mass.) and Nathaniel Sass (Buffalo, N.Y.) won the time trial by a little less than two seconds over New York Athletic Club's John Gallagher (Newton, Pa.) and Gil Dexter (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.). Hay finished sixth in the event at the 2019 World Rowing Under 23 Championships. Gallagher raced at the 2018 World Rowing Junior Championships, while Dexter raced at the 2019 World Rowing Junior Championships. The two crews will race again in tomorrow's final.

Green Racing Project's Will Legenzowski (Vista, N.Y.) won the time trial of the men's single sculls, posting a 6:36.58 to finish nearly 20 seconds ahead of the second-place sculler from Penn AC. Legenzowski made the semifinals of the double sculls at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Rowing earlier this year in Sarasota.

Penn AC's Josie Konopka (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Kate Maeitta (Wayland, Mass.) recorded the fastest time in the women's double sculls time trial, finishing just over four seconds ahead of the Green Racing Project crew.

Green Racing Project's Tucker Thomas (Naples, Fla.) and Simon Hatcher (Portland, Ore.) finished more than four seconds ahead of the OARS composite boat to win the time trial of the men's double sculls.

Racing continues on Tuesday with finals in the 14 of the 15 U23 events. The final in the U23 lightweight men's single sculls, which was the only event to have more than six entries, will take place on Wednesday. Heats and repechages in the lightweight men's single will be held on Tuesday. The winners of the finals will have the opportunity to represent the U.S. at the 2021 World Rowing Under 23 Championships July 7-11 in Racice, Czech Republic.

Click here for complete results from today's time trials. Click here for the event photo gallery.

USRowing will be hosting national team trials all week in Sarasota to select athletes for the World Rowing Under 23 Championships, World Rowing Junior Championships and World Rowing Beach Sprints Finals. In total, more than 140 athletes will be racing for the chance to represent the U.S. later this year at one of the three regattas.

The Under 23 National Team Trials and Under 19 National Team Trials are being held at Nathan Benderson Park, while the Beach Sprints National Team Trials will take place at South Lido Key Beach Park.

The under 19 trials will be held on Wednesday, with time trials in the morning and finals in the afternoon. There are 28 crews entered across the six events. The winners earn the right to race at the 2021 World Rowing Junior Championships scheduled for August 11-15 in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

The Beach Sprints National Team Trials will take place on Saturday. Twenty-eight crews are entered across eight events, four open and four junior. This is the first year that USRowing will select a team to race at the World Rowing Beach Sprints Finals, which are scheduled to take place September 24-26 in Oeiras, Portugal. The trials open with a time trial, followed by a bracket-style, head-to-head racing format.

Racing is tentatively scheduled to start at 8 a.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday. Saturday's Beach Sprints racing is slated to start at 8:30 a.m. The schedule, heat sheets and results for all three events will be available here throughout the week.