Racing for the 2022 World Championships begins on Sunday, September 18, in Racice, Czech Republic. Below, we preview the women's double sculls event.
ENTRIES - 19
2020 Olympic Champion – Romania
2019 World Champion – New Zealand
TOKYO 2020 RECAP
Romania got out to a fast start, taking nearly a length lead on the field by the 500 meter mark with the chasing pack of New Zealand, The Netherlands, and Lithuania in a tight race for the silver and bronze. Romania continued to push out to a big lead in the middle of the race while New Zealand moved solidly into second. At the finish, Romania won by open water over the Kiwis, with the Dutch sprinting to bronze over Lithuania, and USA.
Watch the Olympic Final here, W2x final starts around 1:12:00.
2022 SEASON RECAP
2022 has been dominated by two crews, the Olympic champion double from Romania, Simona Radis and Ancuta Bodnar, and the Dutch double of Laila Youssifou and Roos de Jong. The Netherlands won the first two World Cups, then Romania won World Cup III and the European Championships, the latter over the Dutch. Three additional crews that have raced well are Italy (2nd at WC3, 3rd at Euros), Ireland (2nd at WC2), and Lithuania (3rd at WC3).
USA PROSPECTS
The USA double combo of Sophia Vitas and Kristina Wagner will make their racing debut in Racice after Vitas raced with Kara Kohler at World Cup II in Poznan, taking the bronze medal. Vitas will be racing on her third senior team (2017 W8+ and 2019 W4x) and Wagner on her second, after finishing 5th last year at the Tokyo Olympics in the W2x. Though this double is new, they should be competitive within the field and be in the mix to make the A Final.
MEDAL PICKS
Romania and The Netherlands are the two favorites, while the race for bronze will be wide open, with Italy, Ireland, Lithuania, and USA in the mix. Of note, two stalwarts of the women's single event have moved to the double for this regatta: Ireland's Sanita Puspure, W1x world champion in 2019, and Austria's Magdalena Lobnig, the current Olympic Bronze medalist in the single, who will race with her sister Katharina. Both could both have an impact on the podium.
GOLD – ROMANIA
SILVER – THE NETHERLANDS
BRONZE - ITALY
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