30 Ontario NextGen Rowers Set to Take on the World This Summer
The future looks bright for high performance rowing in Ontario as 30 NextGen rowers from the province were recently named to Rowing Canada Aviron (RCA) Canadian National Team.
The next generation of National Team stars will compete at three highly anticipated international competitions this summer, including the CanAmMex International Regatta, the World Rowing U19 Championships and the World Rowing U23 Championships. A total of 60 Canadian rowers will attend the events after qualifying for the teams through a fiercely contested selection period that determined the best up-and-coming rowers in the nation.
“Seeing so many Ontario rowers named to the RCA National Teams was very exciting,” said Phil Marshall, Director of Performance with Row Ontario. “The fact that 50% of the NextGen rowers named to the teams were from Ontario speaks volumes about the hard work and dedication athletes and coaches are putting in throughout the province. Over the next month there’s a great opportunity for this group of athletes to compete on an international stage and I’m looking forward to cheering them on and watching them perform.”
The CanAmMex Regatta is first up on the schedule and will take place in Sarasota, Florida on the weekend of July 14-15. The athletes will compete against their counterparts from the United States, Mexico and Barbados in what is a crucial development regatta for the selected athletes. Just four days later, the U23 Team will dip their oars in the water in Plovdiv, Bulgaria for the World Rowing U23 Championships. The regatta will be held from July 19-23 and will feature almost 1000 rowers from around the world competing in 22 boat classes. The World Rowing U19 Championships will cap off the international season for the NextGen athletes in Paris, France from Aug. 2-6. The regatta will take place at the same rowing venue as the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics and will showcase 14 boat classes over the five days of competition.
Of the 30 Ontario athletes named to the teams, ten are centralized in the Ontario NextGen Performance Centre, while two de-centralized athletes were named to the team. Several of Ontario’s finest coaches were also named as coaches of the teams. The ONGPC’s Greg Szybka will coach the World U19 Team along with Mike Petrychanko of the St. Catharines Rowing Club, while Dane Lawson (RCA), Scott Anderson (St. Catharines Rowing Club / Brock University) Katie Bruggeling (Queen’s University / Kingston Rowing Club), and Mary Rao (Brock University) will be four of the five coaches leading the World U23 Team.
For more on the 2023 World Rowing U19 Championships, visit World Rowing
For more on the 2023 World Rowing U23 Championships, visit World Rowing
CanAmMex International Regatta Team
Women’s Sweep
Melanie Helfenstein (North Star Rowing Club, Nova Scotia)
Rachel Dirks (Havergal College and Argonaut Rowing Club, Ontario)
Eryn Wale (Victoria City Rowing Club, BC)
Anya Prokopchuk (Brentwood College, BC)
Jade Postma (Ridley College, Ontario)
Malarie Jones (Notre Dame Rowing Club / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre, Ontario)
Talia Nixon (Ridley College, Ontario)
Sabrina Seville (Branksome Hall, Ontario)
Sydney Swick (Ridley College, Ontario)
Women’s Sculling
Elizabeth Najjar (Don Rowing Club, Ontario)
Meghan Harris (Guelph Rowing Club / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre, Ontario)
Chloé Fortin (Aviron Lachine Rowing Club, Quebec)
Sasha Anderson (North Star Rowing Club, Nova Scotia)
Men’s Sculling
Zachary Kano (Wayland-Weston Rowing Association, Massachusetts)
Caillen Piekenhagen (Ridley College, Ontario)
Michael Gore (Ontario NextGen Performance Center)
Conor Dillon (Claremont CSI, BC)
Coaches
Janine Stephens (Manitoba Rowing Association)
Max Button (Aviron Lachine Rowing)
Rick Storm (Row Nova Scotia)
World Rowing U19 Championships Team
Women’s Single (JW1x)
Clara Van Dyk (South Niagara Rowing Club / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre / Ontario)
Men’s Single (JW1x)
Lucas Maroney Babuglia (South Niagara Rowing Club / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre / Ontario)
Women’s Pair (JW2-)
Sarah Stacey (Notre Dame Rowing Club / Ontario)
Makeda Harrison (St. Catharines Rowing Club / Ontario)
Women’s Double (JW2x)
Madeson Scott (South Niagara Rowing Club / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre / Ontario)
Julia Teixeira (Argonaut Rowing Club / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre / Ontario)
Men’s Pair (JM2-)
Peter Scaccabarozzi (BC)
Connor Bohlman (BC)
Women’s Four (BW4-)
Ingrid Eshuis (St. Catharines Rowing Club / Ontario)
Emma Goedhart (Notre Dame Rowing Club / Ontario)
Novella Rusman (Brentwood College School / British-Columbia)
Stella Bittman (Notre Dame Rowing Club / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre / Ontario)
Spare – Autumn Crowe (Ridley College / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre / Ontario)
Coaches
Greg Szybka (Rowing Canada Aviron / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre)
Mike Petrychanko (St. Catharines Rowing Club)
Elana Gelineau (Saskatoon Rowing Club)
World Rowing Under 23 Championship Team
Women’s Pair (BW2-)
Sally Jones (Victoria City Rowing Club / University of British Columbia / BC)
Rachel Weber (Ottawa Rowing Club / University of Western Ontario / Ontario)
Men’s Pair (BM2-)
Michael Keane (Columbia University / Victoria City Rowing Club / BC)
Bob Bryden (Kingston Rowing Club / Queen’s University / Alberta)
Men’s Double (BM2x)
Andrew Hubbard (Calgary Rowing Club / Queen’s University / Alberta)
Michael Ciepiela (Brock University / Ontario NextGen Performance Centre / Ontario)
Women’s Four (BW4-)
Emma Seawright (Don Rowing Club / University of Tennessee / Ontario)
Maya Meschkuleit (Don Rowing Club / Yale University / Ontario)
Leia Till (Brockville Rowing Club / University of Virginia)
Abigail Dent (Kenora Rowing Club / University of Michigan / Manitoba)
Men’s Four (BM4-)
Julian Black (University of British Columbia / BC)
Julien Wiese (University of British Columbia / BC)
Aidan Hembruff (Ottawa Rowing Club / University of Western Ontario / Ontario)
Axel Ewashko (University of British Columbia / Alberta)
Womens’ Eight (BW8+)
Lyndsey Bryden (University of British Columbia / BC)
Claire Ellison (Kingston Rowing Club / Queen’s University / Nova Scotia)
Parker Illingworth (Montreal Rowing Club / University of Texas)
Mira Calder (Victoria City Rowing Club / University or Washington / BC)
Ellie Sousa (Victoria City Rowing Club / University of Victoria / BC)
Lucy Black (Four Bridges Rowing Club / Stanford University / New Brunswick)
Fiona Elliott (London Western Rowing Club / Washington State University / Ontario)
Jana Peachey (North Star Rowing Club/ University of Michigan / Nova Scotia)
Jack Pankratz (Argonaut Rowing Club/ University of Toronto / Ontario)
Lightweight Women’s Single (BLW1x)
Karissa Riley (Calgary Rowing Club / University of Western Ontario / Alberta)
Lightweight Men’s Single (BLM1x)
Stephen Harris (Guelph Rowing Club / Brock University / Ontario)
Lightweight Men’s Quad (BLM4x)
Giancarlo DiPompeo (St. Catharines Rowing Club / University of Victoria / Ontario)
Emerson Crick (Halifax Rowing Club / University of British Columbia / Nova Scotia)
Lucas Celia (Kingston Rowing Club / Queen’s University / Ontario)
Connor Dodds (Regina Rowing Club / Brock University / Saskatchewan)
Spares – To be determined
Coaches
Alex Marchuk (Alberta Rowing Association / Calgary Rowing Club)
Scott Anderson (St. Catharines Rowing Club / Brock University / Ontario)
Mary Rao (Brock University / Ontario)
Katie Bruggeling (Queen’s University / Kingston Rowing Club)
Dane Lawson (Rowing Canada Aviron)
*Article written with files from RCA
