World Rowing Coastal Championships Get Underway on Thursday

After hitting the water this past weekend in the Beach Sprint format, rowers will switch to distance racing tomorrow as the 2021 World Rowing Coastal Championships get underway in Oeiras, Portugal.

With more than one entry allowed per country, the U.S. will have nine boats racing across the seven boat classes starting Thursday. Eight rowers who competed last weekend in the sprint format will be racing again in the distance races.

Three women's single scullers will wear the USA colors, while two crews are scheduled to race in the women's coxed quadruple sculls. The U.S. will have one entry each in the men's double sculls, mixed double sculls, women's double sculls and men's coxed quadruple sculls. No U.S. boats entered the men's single.

Coxswain Bennett Rossell, who helped the coxed mixed quad to a bronze medal at the Beach Sprint Finals, will be coxing both the men's and women's coxed quads. He will be joined by Chris Bak, Ben Booth, Marc Oria, and Kory Rogers in the men's event. Bak and Rogers raced at the Beach Sprint Finals in the men' solo and mixed double sculls, respectively, while Oria served as one of the coaches.

In the women's quad, Rossell will race with Brooke Downes, Elizabeth Hinley, Hannah Huppi and Cassidy Norton in the USA2 boat. Huppi won bronze with Rossell at the Beach Sprint Finals, while Hinley and Norton also raced in the sprint regatta in the mixed double and women's solo, respectively. Downes served as one of the boat handlers during the sprint races.

The other U.S. women's quad will feature Hannah Wayment-Steele, Isabella Schiros, Liliana Retelny, Amanda Hawkins and Athena Bradley.

John Huppi and John Olbrys will race in the men's double sculls fresh off their bronze-medal performance in the mixed quad at the Beach Sprint Finals on Saturday.

Hillary Saeger, a seven-time, flat-water U.S. National Team member, will be racing with Erin Roberts, a 2015 National Team member, in the women's double sculls, while Luke Rein and Bridget Schodorf will race in the mixed double sculls.

Wayment-Steele, Dayna Deuter, and Christine Rubino will race in the women's single event.

In addition to the USA entries, multiple-time U.S. National Team members Molly Bruggeman and Vicky Opitz will be racing in one of the British women's coxed quads.

Heats will take place on Thursday and Friday, with the first set of B finals being held Friday afternoon. The A finals and the remaining B finals will be held Saturday.

In total, more than 800 competitors in 342 boats from 34 countries are scheduled to compete in Portugal.

Live streaming of all races will be available on World Rowing's website and World Rowing's YouTube channel. The schedule, start lists, results and live event updates also will be available on www.worldrowing.com. Click here to check out the USRowing's photo gallery.