The 2026 South Australian Rowing Championships delivered three days of high-quality racing at the Alex Ramsay Regatta Course, as 918 athletes filled the lanes across 84 events.
Among the standout performers were two South Australian Institute of Sport (SASI) pathway athletes, Ollie Evans-Wood and Caroline McNally, who demonstrated the strength of Rowing Australia’s development network while laying down important markers ahead of the 2026 Australian Rowing Championships (ARC26).
Both athletes train full-time in a high-performance daily training environment and continue to build toward national selection and, ultimately, the sport’s biggest stage.
Nineteen-year-old Adelaide University Boat Club rower Ollie Evans-Wood delivered a commanding regatta, claiming Gold in the Open Men’s Single Scull, Open Men’s Double Scull, Open Men’s Quad Scull, and Open Men’s Eight.
His preparation reflects the demands of life as a SASI athlete.
“A typical week looks like seven days on water sessions down here at West Lakes and that’s through singles, doubles, quads, just changing up throughout the week,” Evans-Wood said.
“And then we have some gym sessions and some 90 minute sessions and, about three times a week. And that’s all done at the SASI building.”
That structure translates directly to race readiness.
“The type of training that we do, both the volume and the intensity, both just mentally and physically prepares me for the conditions of racing, the workload and other stuff like that.
“We also do have a few recovery sessions that we do through SASI, through the amazing support staff we have there, like the biomechanics and the sports scientists there.
“We’re able to do some heat chamber environmental stuff and also some saunas to help replicate the hot conditions to help us race.”
With ARC26 on the horizon, Evans-Wood views the national stage as a critical next step.
“Attending the Australian Rowing Championships for me is a great opportunity to race other athletes from around the whole country at a more competitive level.
"Even though the racing is very good here in SA, I’ve raced against everyone here before. It’s good to race against other people and it’s also a good stepping stone to trials leading into the Under 23 team.
“It’s just a good chance to get a benchmark against other people who are similar in high performance level.”
His ambitions extend far beyond the domestic circuit.
“I’ve definitely thought about going to the Olympics and it would be my absolute dream goal to get there.
Especially in a double or a quad, my favourite boat classes. And it sort of looks like I just need to keep training, keeping consistent, just get those years under my belt and then be able to go from there."
Twenty-year-old sculler McNally matched that momentum on the women’s side, winning the Open Women’s Single Scull and Open Women’s Quad Scull while adding Silver in the Open Women’s Eight.
Her journey into the sport began overseas before continuing in South Australia.
“I started rowing at the end of 2019. I was living in New Zealand at the time, so I started rowing over there and then after my first season I moved back to Australia, to Adelaide and kept rowing at school and then once I finished school I came into Sassy and kept rowing,” McNally said.
Like Evans-Wood, McNally thrives in SASI’s performance culture.
“I think while I've been at SASI, I've been training alongside lots of people who've been on junior teams, under 23 teams and senior teams. And I think I've learnt a lot from them in terms of like high performance habits and there's obviously quite a high standard of training and I think that's pushed me to be trained with intent and be consistent with my training.”
Looking ahead to ARC26, she welcomes the challenge of deeper national fields.
“I think ARC26 is a really good opportunity for me to race other people who have been training in the same boat class as me and have more competitive racing. I think often the sculling field is quite small here in South Australia, so to be able to go to nationals and be competitive among a bigger group of scholars is really exciting.”
Her long-term ambitions remain clear.
“I've definitely thought about the Olympics. It's one of my big goals. I think the journey to get there would be keep training here in South Australia at SASI, keep improving and then hopefully go to the HPNTC and then I guess then that puts you on more on the path to going to the Olympics.”
And in the near future, she has her sights set on wearing the green and gold.
“In two to three years I'd like to have gained some international racing experience, hopefully representing Australia. I think my big goal would be make it to Under 23 worlds and win a medal.”
The performances of Evans-Wood and McNally reinforced the impact of South Australia’s high-performance system and the broader Rowing Australia pathway.
Both athletes combined heavy training loads with disciplined racing to produce championship-winning performances, exactly the type of progression ARC26 is designed to test.