Rowsellas start journey to Olympic Beach Sprint debut

Australia’s Beach Sprint rowing squad will launch its 2026 international campaign on Friday at the Filippi Lido Beach Sprint Regatta in Marina di Castagneto, Tuscany, Italy.

Australia’s Beach Sprint rowing squad will launch its 2026 international campaign on Friday at the Filippi Lido Beach Sprint Regatta in Marina di Castagneto, Tuscany, Italy.

The Rowsellas go into the June 5-7 regatta with both ambition and an intent to develop their Beach Sprint skills and strength in the new sport that will make its Olympic debut at Los Angeles 2028.

Rowing Australia Head of Beach Sprint James Loveday acknowledged the funding and support network that has already been helping the program to establish itself on the world stage.

He cited the unwavering support of Rowing Australia Patron Mrs Gina Rinehart AO and Hancock Prospecting that has underpinned RA’s High Performance program for 10 years, saying it has been central in helping Australia establish a professional Beach Sprint program.

“Our patron, Mrs Rinehart, contributes a huge amount of support to the program, and it benefits the athletes in a direct way,” Loveday said.

“It’s great to see our athletes have the means to execute their training and racing the way we need it to be executed to be internationally competitive.”

Loveday also recognised the Australian Sports Commission, Australian Government, NSWIS, Commonwealth Games Australia, and Filippi boats for providing the resources and funding needed to compete internationally.

Since arriving in Italy early last week, the Beach Sprint team for the Filippi Lido regatta has been based at RA’s European Training Centre [ETC] at Gavirate, finalising preparations for Tuscany

The Filippi Lido regatta is about far more than medals though.

It also represents the first major opportunity to measure where Australia sits against the rapidly evolving international standard in one of rowing’s newest and fastest-moving disciplines.

“This is an event that’s progressing very quickly,” Loveday said.

“We’re just trying to stay a step ahead of the game by watching what other people are doing but not copying.”

Coached by Olympic Gold medallist Spencer Turrin OAM, the team in Italy is a blend of athletes experienced in beach sprint and flatwater rowers transitioning into the discipline.

Two athletes who have recently transitioned from flatwater rowing - Isabella Scammell who hails from Cowra in the Central West NSW and impressed at the recent selection trials in Canberra; and Australian representative sculler Alex Rossi from Western Australia.

Whereas continuity and experience in the team comes from Sydney’s Oscar Scheel Gamborg and Canberran Catherine Khan who have both competed in World Beach Sprint Championships.

In Tuscany, they will all race in the Beach Sprint Solo, as well as the Beach Sprint Mixed Double in which Scheel Gamborg and Scammell will pair up as one crew, and Rossi and Khan the other.

The three-day regatta is also the fourth and final round of the Filippi Lido Beach Sprint Series and because of that, Loveday expects it will attract many of the world’s leading nations.

That the regatta is also the final event of the Filippi Lido series with prize money on offer should also strengthen the field.

Austria’s Magdalena Lobnig, a silver medallist in the Beach Sprint Women’s Solo behind New Zealand’s Emma Twigg at last year’s World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals, has already competed on the circuit this season. Lithuania and Spain have also been heavily involved.

“We would hope to see some nations send teams to the final event to try and win that pot of money,” Loveday said.

For RA there is a bigger picture too. The regatta is the first major checkpoint in a 2026 campaign that continues with the Australian Beach Sprint Championships on the Gold Coast in September and selection for the world titles in Qingdao, China in October.

Loveday believes the larger Beach Sprint group in Australia is benefiting from the momentum of recent seasons, including medals in non-Olympic events at the Beach Sprint Finals. But he is also conscious that Beach Sprint rowing remains a discipline where innovation can rapidly reshape the competitive landscape.

Unlike flatwater rowing, Beach Sprint racing combines explosive rowing power with running, beach starts, buoy turns and transitions in races lasting only a few minutes.

Athletes also face a huge workload over a compressed timeframe. In Tuscany, athletes in both singles and doubles could race eight to 10 times across a weekend, with quarterfinals, semi-finals and finals potentially packed into a three-hour window.

A major development for the sport in Australia, says Loveday, has been the emergence of training hubs in Australia, with athletes based in Canberra, Sydney, Adelaide, Perth and Queensland.

The plan is to build stronger collaboration between RA, the State Institutes and Clubs as Beach Sprint nears its Olympic debut.

“We’re keen when we get back in June to engage the State Institutes and the Clubs and see whether we can get some momentum going with a training group,” Loveday said.

A national training camp is planned by RA for July, allowing athletes and coaches to share lessons from Italy before preparations intensify for the Australian titles in September.

Loveday sees Beach Sprint rowing as a constant problem-solving exercise demanding adaptability, creativity and rapid learning.

“You don’t have the convenience of always being able to do what you want to do in the exact location you want to do it,” he said.

“But think in terms of principles and what you’re trying to get out of a period of time, you usually find a way of creating a solution.”

That philosophy may define Australia’s 2026 beach sprint season: learn quickly, innovate constantly and try to establish Australia among the early leaders in rowing’s new Olympic frontier.

How to follow the Filippi Lido Beach Sprint regatta

Follow all the action through Rowing Australia’s website and socials

For LIVE streaming of the Filippi Lido Beach Sprint Regatta click HERE

For more information on the Filippi Lido Beach Sprint regatta go direct to the Filippi Lido Beach Sprint regatta site HERE

For the Australian Beach Sprint Team at the Filippi Lido regatta, click HERE

By Rupert Guinness, Rowing Australia Teams Media Manager