GB’s Henry and Pritchard win golds at European Championships
Great Britain's Lauren Henry and Benjamin Pritchard won gold medals on the second day of the European Rowing Championships in Varese, Italy, both successfully defending their titles from the previous year. Henry, an Olympic champion from the Paris 2024 Games, took command of the women's single sculls in the second half of the race, while Pritchard held off Italian rival Giacomo Perini to retain his PR1 men's single sculls crown.
Elsewhere, the British women's eight, featuring Annie Campbell-Orde, Lauren Irwin, Katherine George, Heidi Long, Megan Slabbert, Amelia Standing, Eve Stewart and Elizabeth Witt with cox Jack Tottem, took silver, finishing 5.43 seconds behind a strong Romanian crew. These results follow three golds won by the GB team on Saturday, bringing their overall tally to five so far. The event serves as preparation ahead of the 2026 World Championships in the Netherlands (24-30 August), with Britain's men's squad training separately at an altitude camp in Silvretta rather than competing in Italy.
- Lauren Henry and Benjamin Pritchard both retained European rowing titles
- GB women's eight took silver, 5.43 seconds behind Romania
- Championships precede the 2026 World Championships in the Netherlands
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The European Rowing Championships are the main annual competition for national rowing teams from across Europe. Crews race in different boat classes, including single sculls, where one rower powers a boat using two oars, and the eight, where eight rowers use one oar each with a cox steering.
Lauren Henry represents Great Britain in women’s single sculls and won Olympic gold at the Paris 2024 Games. Benjamin Pritchard races in the PR1 class, which is for rowers with significant impairment to their leg and trunk function; he competes using his arms and shoulders. European titles are part of the build-up to the World Championships, where rowers from around the world compete.