Crew of the Year: Romania’s women’s Olympic eight

Romania’s women’s Olympic eight is the Rowing News Crew of the Year. Not only did they win the Olympic gold medal—in a blistering 5:54 (the world-best time is 5:52.9, set by Romania in a heat at the Tokyo Olympics), open water ahead of silver-medalist Canada—but also they doubled up, splitting in a double, pair, and four to win silver, silver, and finish fourth, respectively.

The three medals won by the nine Romanian women placed them fourth on the medals table—of nations. Only The Netherlands (eight), Great Britain (eight), and New Zealand (four) won more.

“We don’t row the eight much [in training],” said Simona Radis, who sculled in the double in addition to rowing in the eight, noting that the whole crew trains the same and shares common technique, allowing them essentially to jump in the eight—and win.

In addition to winning this year’s European Rowing Championships, seven of the Olympic eight won the 2023 World Rowing Championships, as well as winning medals in the double, pair, and four, qualifying all four boats for the Games.

Leading up to the start of racing in Paris, the entries indicated that Romania wouldn’t double up for the Olympics, with other athletes entered in half of the seats in each boat. It proved a ruse, and a useful one (and completely within the written rules, if not their spirit). It distracted the competition leading into the most intense week of the quadrennial and granted Olympic credentials to the additional Romania athletes listed, limiting the number left for other competing countries.

Doubling up at the Olympics could have backfired on the Romanians, if they didn’t advance directly to the final by winning their heat. All but the two heat winners on the Monday of the week-long Olympic regatta had to race the repechage on Thursday—the same day of both the double sculls and fours finals, and the day after the pair semifinals.

By winning the heat, the U.S. women’s eight could have advanced directly to the Saturday final and put the Romanians in a very tough situation. They would have forced the Romanian double to hot-seat two Olympic races within an hour. But the Romanians were ready and blew off the line, over-stroking everyone at 50-plus strokes per minute, before “settling” to 41 for the body of the race (as is their custom) and winning the heat more than six and half seconds ahead of the American women.

“We didn’t plan to lose against the Romanians,” said U.S. chief coach Josy Verndonkschot. “We wanted to make them pay, and we couldn’t. So blame us, because now you give them a free ride to the finals.”

After the heat, members of the U.S. eight said they had “more gears,” but in the final they finished fifth in 6:01.7, more than seven seconds back from Romania.

No one was to blame; this Romanian crew is just the best. Defending Olympic champion Canada won the silver, open water behind the new Olympic champs.

If anyone in rowing is playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers, it’s the Romanian women’s eight—looking like nine queens to everyone else’s pawns.

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