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By John Bowes, Australian UniRoos Rowing Team Head Coach
The UniRoos rowing team have done Australia proud at the 2026 FISU World University Rowing Championships in Canada on 13-15 August.
The highlight for the team of 12 athletes in the regatta at Lake Fanshawe, London, Ontario came in the Women’s Double Sculls event where the Australian crew of Georgia Campbell (University of Queensland) and Caroline McNally (Adelaide University), made the A-Final against a very strong field in which they placed sixth.
Photo: The UniRoos Men's Double Scull competing in their B-Final.
The Men’s Double Scull of Jude Schirmer and Alexander Williams (both Adelaide University) took valuable lessons from their heat and put them into practice, powering to a commanding victory in the B-Final. Their B-Final time would have been fast enough to win them a Bronze Medal in the A-Final that was raced only 10 minutes later in comparable conditions.
In the Women’s Fours, the crew of Lucy Gillon (Deakin University), Tylah Hutton (University of Queensland), Emma Pittman (University of Western Australia) and Mackenzie Kopke-Veldhuis (University of Oklahoma) left their best to last by winning the B-Final by over a length. This crew will be a force in the future.
The Women’s Pairs event saw of Grace Barrera (Flinders University) and Tamara Bates (Adelaide University) just miss out on the A Final. However, they recouped to produce a cracking race in the B-Final, finishing a very close second.
Photo: The UniRoos Women's Pair on the water at Lake Fanshawe
In the Single Sculls, Liesel Page (University of Technology Sydney) and Darcy James (Australian National University) showed heart in the largest event by participants to both finish fourth in their B-Final. Both scullers have years left in the Under 23s and are ones to watch.
Most importantly, every crew improved throughout the regatta, which was remarkable considering the UniRoos only landed in Canada three days before racing began.
Photo: Darcy James competing in the Men's Single Sculls
The team was supported brilliantly by coaches Matt Ryan OLY, a 2008 Olympic Games Silver Medallist in the Four, and Jacinta Edmunds, a 2018 and 2019 World Rowing Championship Silver Medallist in the Eight. Drawing on their vast experience in high-performance rowing, the UniRoos learned and grew by the day.
The FISU World University Rowing Championships, attended by the world’s best student athletes, are of a very high standard, featuring many Under 23 and Senior competitors.
The UniRoos left with much learned and are grateful to Rowing Australia for supporting the event, and the team’s coaches.
Photo credits: Brandon Vandecaveye / Western Mustangs and Bob Gentile
