Simona Radiș and Adriana Adam set world record to win rowing pair title in Amsterdam

World record gold in Amsterdam

Simona Radiș and Adriana Adam secured the gold medal in the women's coxless pair at the World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam on Friday. The Romanian crew completed the race in 6 minutes, 49.86 seconds on Lake Bosbaan, finishing ahead of France (6:56.21) and the United States (6:59.76). This result established a new world record, eclipsing the previous benchmark set in 2014 by British rowers Helen Glover and Heather Stanning on the same course. The victory delivered Romania its 20th world championship title in this specific event. Competition across the regatta proceeded following a weather delay of more than one hour caused by persistent rain.

Simona Radiș reflected on the victory after crossing the finish line.

We are happy and grateful. It is our first world gold in this lineup. But it will certainly not be the last.

Career milestones and federation reaction

The win represents the sixth senior world championship gold medal for Radiș and the third world title for Adam, who previously earned two gold medals as part of the women's eight (8+1) crew. The Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee released an official statement commending the pair's endurance across the final segment of the 2,000-meter race.

Great champions define themselves in the last thousand, or, more especially, on the 500 m finish. Simona and Adriana rowed at their rhythm, the speed was maintained, and in the end the class of the two closed out the standings.

Men's pair final and sculling events

In the men's coxless pair final, Ștefan Constantin Berariu and Florin Sorin Lehaci finished in fourth place with a time of 6:24.35. The Romanian crew held third position through much of the race before Italian rowers Matteo Lodo and Giovanni Codato (6:19.68) overtook them in the final stretch to claim bronze. New Zealand won the men's pair gold medal in 6:16.62, while Australia took silver in 6:18.50. In other Friday races, Mihai Chiruță advanced to the men's single sculls semifinals after placing third in his quarterfinal in 6:50.44, behind American (6:42.36) and French (6:46.08) competitors. Bianca Ifteni finished fifth in her women's single sculls quarterfinal in 7:38.23 and moves to Final C, while Andrei Cornea and Marian Enache placed sixth in Final B of the men's double sculls with a time of 6:21.94.

Earlier qualifications across the Romanian team

Romania entered 14 crews across women's, men's, and mixed events at the Amsterdam regatta. On Thursday, three Romanian boats secured qualification berths for their respective A Finals. The women's four crew of Ancuța Bodnar, Maria Lehaci, Magdalena Rusu, and Geanina Juncanariu finished second in semifinal two with a time of 6:42.06, trailing the United States (6:34.05). The men's four crew of Cosmin Iulian Pleșescu, Leontin Nuțescu, Andrei Vatamaniuc, and Ciprian Tudosă placed third in semifinal one in 6:01.73 behind the United States (5:57.48) and Great Britain (5:58.30). In the women's quadruple sculls, Roxana Anghel, Gabriela Tivodariu, Andrada Moroșanu, and Iulia Bălăucă finished second in semifinal two in 6:23.15, behind the United States (6:20.41), to claim a place in their medal race.