Nick Jones17 September 2025 5:39:50 PM3 min read

Aussie Eights bringing fresh faces, experienced campaigners and a dash of momentum to World Champs

By Nick Jones with the Rowsellas in Shanghai

Australia’s Men’s and Women’s Eights will line up at the 2025 World Rowing Championships in Shanghai with determination after encouraging results through the European season and a solid training block back home.

Both boats feature a mix of debutants and experienced athletes, reflecting strategies of developing depth for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics while targeting strong performances on the world stage now.

Women’s Eight building ‘step by step’

The Australian Women’s Eight has enjoyed a promising campaign, winning Bronze medals at World Cups in Varese and Lucerne.

Senior coach Xavier Dorfman is confident the crew has built the right foundations to challenge in Shanghai.

“It’s a really new project for many of the athletes, and for me also. We’ve got young rowers who are fresh but full of energy and potential,” Dorfman said.

“The goal is to build something strong for the long term, to give the girls the best tools and to increase their experience step by step.”

Still, he knows expectations are high after the boat proved itself to be competitive in Europe.

“We want to continue to build and work, but Shanghai is clearly the main focus of the season,” Dorfman said.

“We hope to deliver the best we can and learn from it for the future.”

Women’s Eight

Coxswain: Hayley Verbunt OLY (#918)

Stroke: Paige Barr OLY (#900)

Seven-seat: Jaime Ford

Six-seat: Laura Gourley OLY (#914)

Five-seat: Zara Collisson

Four-seat: Ella Bramwell (#902)

Three-seat: Sophie Houston

Two-seat: Katherine Easton

Bow: Georgie Gleeson (#895)

Coach: Xavier Dorfman

Provisional Race Schedule

Thursday September 25 – Heats

Saturday September 27 - Finals

Men’s Eight harnessing youth and resilience

The Australian Men’s Eight has built through the season and aim to deliver their best in Shanghai.

After placing fifth in Varese, they claimed Silver in Lucerne before combining with the Men's Four to win the prestigious Grand Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta.

Senior coach Nicolo Maurogiovanni said the performances reflected the crew’s ability to come together quickly, despite featuring seven World Championship debutants.

“Many of the guys have come from the US collegiate system, which builds resilient athletes,” Maurogiovanni said.

“They bring that resilience into the boat and you can see it when the time comes to perform.”

The line-up has had just one change since Lucerne, giving the crew consistency while adding new energy.

Maurogiovanni emphasised that experience within the boat, combined with youthful drive, has created the right balance.

“Yes, it’s a young crew, but youth is just a number. Their excitement and determination to put themselves on the world stage is a strength,” Maurogiovanni said.

“The focus is on refining what gives us speed and executing it well.”

For Maurogiovanni, the measure of success will be in execution.

“The success for us is getting off the water and knowing that we did everything that we planned, everything we put in place, and executed on that.”

Men’s Eight

Coxswain: Nicholas Dunlop

Stroke: Patrick Long

Seven-seat: Angus Dawson OLY (#899)

Six-seat: Alex Nichol

Five-seat: Harry Manton

Four-seat: Marcus Emmett

Three-seat: Jack Robertson OLY (#921)

Two-seat: Alexander McClean

Bow: Mitch Salisbury

Coach: Nicolo Maurogiovanni

Provisional Race Schedule

Thursday September 25 – Heats

Saturday September 27 – Finals

How to Follow the 2025 World Rowing Championships

The first races will start September 21 at 12:05 AEST. The medal races start September 25 at 16:05 AEST.

Here is how to follow the event on mobile, tablet, or desktop:

The provisional time table for the events can be found here and entries for all the events can be found here.
Live race tracker and LIVE audio will be available for ALL races on www.worldrowing.com.
LIVE video streaming will be available on the World Rowing website on Sunday September 21 from 12:00 AEST. The video streaming will start 5 minutes before the first race.