Row Results

Introduction

This page provides information about a study conducted by GRI to analyze the results of the USA U23 Women 8+ team at the 2016 World Rowing Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The overall purpose of the study is 1) to confirm that the 2016 USA Women U23 8+ team's results were uncommon by contrasting them with those of others in rowing and 2) to provide explanations from which we can learn in rowing, other sports, and business.

An Unprecedented Victory

According to our analysis, the 2016 USA Women U23 8+ team achieved the largest winning margin in all 8+ events at the Senior and U23 levels since 1977, including men, women, and the Olympic level. This is a monumental achievement in rowing, setting a new world record.

Conditions in rowing can vary significantly from race to race, but the margin between the first and second boats provides an accurate assessment of how well the winning boat performed. A winning margin of 7.16 seconds for the 2016 USA Women U23 8+, when on average, U23 and Senior confounded is 2.05 seconds, in a sport where a millisecond can make a difference, is simply astounding. As we have continued to track results since we started this study, this achievement has not been surpassed yet. The number of factors at play that impact results is numerous, starting well before the race, and including human factors that, by nature, are hard to capture.

Origin of the Study

The study started in 2023 (yes, that's correct, seven years after the 2016 event), with the conjunction of watching rowing races in Chile at the Pan-American Games (yes, it's weird!), where Colette coaxed the US mixed boat to a substantial margin (yes! Colette is my daughter), and seeing Jean-Christophe Rolland, the President of the International Rowing Federation, awarding medals. Rolland is best known for the Sydney 2000 Olympics victory in the pair with Michel Andrieux, when he made a call of three words (yes! just three words) "pour nos enfants" that instantly sparked their decisive win

If a win in a rowing pair can happen so decisively with only three words, between two people led by a potential win, trapped in a shell (yes, they apparently enjoy it!), but being connected in a way, that they both testified, they "could only dream of", there may be something we can learn about it, in sports but also in business. Small factors, as little as three words, can make a huge difference. Context apparently greatly matters. Sincere, great relationships too.

Having watched the U23 2016 race in person, still stunned by its results compared to all other races I have watched (Yes, quite a lot, with two of my daughters and my wife rowing), coupled with my passion for business performance (Yes, I am an entrepreneur with a PhD in management science), and the chance to be in contact with extraordinary people at an extraordinary time ultimately led to this study.

Running the Study

Rather than introducing new anecdotes about rowing, the project began with methodologies borrowed from the social sciences that blend qualitative and quantitative approaches. The challenge added to the study: to learn from this success about how performance also occurs in competitive businesses, proved, over time, to be substantial.

Although there are commonalities between sports and competitive businesses (not to mention sports businesses and, leaving aside public administrations), the sports context reveals a simple truth about the focus on being first in a short period. Rowing is a perfect sport for showing how success is built collectively, with athletes in close proximity. Rather than presenting a list of explanations, the comparison has enabled the study to focus on core concepts that drive performance in both contexts.

I was fortunate to obtain the team's GRI adaptive profiles, provide feedback to the athletes, and coach a few days before the race. Individual interviews were conducted at the end of 2023. Analysis of the interviews and results has led to considering all factors, including those related to leadership, positive psychology, and organizational performance, that can explain the crew's exceptional winning margin.

The athletes, coach, and participants in the study are as follows: Erin Briggs (Bow 1), Cassandra Johnson (Seat 2), Kendall Brewer (Seat 3), Gia Doonan (Seat 4), Regina Salmons (Seat 5), Sarah Dougherty (Seat 6), Georgia Ratcliff (Seat 7), Kendall Chase (Seat 8), Colette Lucas-Conwell (Coxswain), and Wesley Ng (coach). We are grateful for their generous participation in this study, which has spanned several years, and for the key involvement of their coxswain.

Margin's Plot

This plot illustrates the winning margin between the first- and second-place 8+ boats since 1977, for men and women, U23 and senior, at the World Championship level. The arrow shows where the results of the 2016 USA Women U23 8+ boat stand. See all the details of the data below, which were extracted from the World Rowing website. See also the details of the results of the 2016 US Women’s U23 8+ boat.

The margins were ordered from smallest to largest in each of the four categories. Although the results are comparable, analysis by category may reveal striking differences between men and women, and between U23 and senior levels.

Results Analysis

To determine whether the 2016 U23 USA Women 8+ result was exceptional, we needed to compare it to other results at a similar world championship level. We examined the winning margin of all 8+ events at the World Championships and Olympics for U23 Women, U23 Men, Senior Women, and Senior Men. It is worth noting that the U23 championship for men and women only began in 2005 and 2006, respectively.

Anti-doping has been a concern in rowing since the 1960s. The International Rowing Federation (FISA) was the first to introduce an anti-doping regulation in 1976, well before the establishment of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in 1999 and the adoption of the anti-doping code at the Sydney Games in 2000. As a result, only the results from 1977 onwards are taken into account for consideration.

Both Senior and U23 results are comparable, which is why we included both. However, Junior results that are too distant from the senior level were not included.

Of the 17 data points collected on the U23 Women’s category, the 2016 US 8+ was the only crew to have a winning margin over 7 seconds, an incredible 3.56 seconds above the average winning margin. Furthermore, across all 122 data points collected, we found the average winning margin to be 2.05 sec, 5.11 sec less than the 7.16 sec winning margin of the 2016 USA Women’s 8+.

We didn't find evidence that the 2016 results were due to any external factors beyond the team's efforts, such as weather conditions at a specific location on the water. All athletes complied with doping regulations. Other boats from Great Britain, Russia, New Zealand, Australia, and Germany were equally engaged in the race.

Results Data

The tables below show the results for men and women in the U23 (Under 23 years old) and senior categories at the World Championship level, including the Olympics. Since we were interested in testing how much the first boat won, only the first two results are included in the tables. Weather conditions can vary significantly from race to race; thus, the time of the winning boat doesn't provide an accurate assessment of how well it did when comparing results with other years. However, the margin between the first and second boats does. This does happen in other sports like sailing, but not in others such as swimming.

Women's U23

Year	Winning Crew	Time	Second Place	Time	Margin(sec)
2025	Great Britain	6:13.60	United States	6:16.28	2.68
2024	Great Britain	6:06.58	United States	6:08.35	1.77
2023	United States	6:09.14	Germany	6:13.34	4.2
2022	United States	6:23.03	Great Britain	6:27.81	4.78
2021	United States	6:16.69	Netherlands	6:20.43	3.74
2019	Netherlands	6:17.93	Great Britain	6:22.52	4.59
2018	Canada	6:04.61	Netherlands	6:06.58	1.97
2017	Canada	6:09.89	United States	6:16.44	6.55
2016	United States	6:36.90	Great Britain	6:44.06	7.16*
2015	United States	6:19.49	Russia	6:22.02	2.53
2014	United States	6:07.88	Great Britain	6:11.76	3.88
2013	United States	6:16.81	Great Britain	6:19.15	2.34
2012	United States	6:25.92	Germany	6:30.47	4.55
2011	Canada	6:03.23	New Zealand	6:06.02	2.79
2010	United States	6:31.97	New Zealand	6:36.48	4.51
2009	Great Britain	6:20.71	United States	6:21.80	1.09
2008	United States	6:36.01	Poland	6:39.72	3.71
2007	Belarus	6:15.20	Germany	6:15.43	0.23
2006	United States	6:06.68	Belarus	6:08.98	2.3
				Average	3.6
				Standard Deviation	1.8

Men's U23

Year	Winning Crew	Time	Second Place	Time	Margin(sec)
2025	Great Britain	5:29.60	New Zealand	5:32.59	2.99
2024	Great Britain	5:24.73	United States	5:27.50	2.77
2023	Great Britain	5:26.51	United States	5:28.90	2.39
2022	Great Britain	5:51.71	United States	5:53.97	2.26
2021	Great Britain	5:34.32	United States	5:34.55	0.21
2019	Great Britain	5:34.30	United States	5:36.21	1.91
2018	United States	5:22.48	Great Britain	5:24.93	2.45
2017	Netherlands	5:29.55	Romania	5:31.57	2.02
2016	Netherlands	5:54.10	Great Britain	5:57.26	3.16
2015	Germany	5:33.56	United States	5:36.49	2.93
2014	New Zealand	5:28.82	Australia	5:30.45	1.63
2013	New Zealand	5:28.63	United States	5:31.79	3.16
2012	United States	5:47.66	Germany	5:48.22	0.56
2011	United States	5:24.31	Czech Republic	5:26.21	1.9
2010	Germany	5:44.78	United States	5:47.48	2.7
2009	Poland	5:32.77	Germany	5:34.11	1.34
2008	United States	5:49.42	Canada	5:53.30	3.88
2007	Estonia	5:33.90	Germany	5:34.29	0.39
2006	Canada	5:30.72	Germany	5:31.78	1.06
2005	Romania	5:50.90	Italy	5:51.82	0.92
				Average	1.9
				Standard Deviation	1.0

Women's Senior

Year	Winning Crew	Time	Second Place	Time	Margin(sec)
2025	Netherlands	6:08.10	Canada	6:10.83	2.73
2024	Romania	5:54.39	Canada	5:58.84	4.45
2023	Romania	6:01.28	United States	6:03.73	2.45
2022	Romania	6:01.14	Netherlands	6:05.04	3.9
2021	Canada	5:59.13	New Zealand	6:00.04	0.91
2019	New Zealand	5:56.91	Australia	5:59.63	2.72
2018	United States	6:00.97	Canada	6:03.05	2.08
2017	Romania	6:06.40	Canada	6:07.09	0.69
2016	United States	6:01.49	Great Britain	6:03.49	2
2015	United States	6:05.65	New Zealand	6:08.52	2.87
2014	United States	5:56.83	Canada	5:59.66	2.83
2013	United States	6:02.14	Canada	6:07.04	4.9
2012	United States	6:10.59	Canada	6:12.06	1.47
2011	United States	6:03.65	Canada	6:04.39	0.74
2010	United States	6:12.42	Canada	6:16.12	3.7
2009	United States	6:05.34	Romania	6:06.94	1.6
2008	United States	6:05.34	Netherlands	6:07.22	1.88
2007	United States	6:17.21	Romania	6:18.34	1.13
2006	United States	5:55.50	Germany	5:57.29	1.79
2005	Australia	5:58.10	Romania	5:59.50	1.4
2004	Romania	6:17.70	United States	6:19.56	1.86
2003	Germany	6:41.23	Romania	6:44.63	3.4
2002	United States	6:04.25	Australia	6:05.10	0.85
2001	Australia	6:03.66	Romania	6:04.96	1.3
2000	Romania	6:06.44	Netherlands	6:09.39	2.95
1999	Romania	6:47.66	United States	6:48.81	1.15
1998	Romania	6:14.62	United States	6:15.81	1.19
1997	Romania	6:02.40	Canada	6:07.18	4.78
1996	Romania	6:19.73	Canada	6:24.05	4.32
1995	United States	6:50.73	Romania	6:52.76	2.03
1994	Germany	6:07.42	United States	6:08.24	0.82
1993	Romania	6:18.88	United States	6:20.42	1.54
1992	Canada	6:02.62	Romania	6:06.26	3.64
1991	Canada	6:28.20	URS	6:28.73	0.53
1990	Romania	5:59.26	United States	6:01.67	2.41
1989	Romania	6:07.92	Germany	6:08.19	0.27
1988	RDA	6:15.17	Romania	6:17.44	2.27
1987	Romania	6:55.61	United States	6:57.27	1.66
1986	URS	6:08.76	RDA	6:09.77	1.01
1985	URS	6:14.00	RDA	6:14.89	0.89
				Average	2.1
				Standard Deviation	1.2

Men's Senior

Year	Winning Crew	Time	Second Place	Time	Margin(sec)
2025	Netherlands	5:27.67	Great Britain	5:29.93	2.26
2024	Great Britain	5:22.88	Netherlands	5:23.92	1.05
2023	Great Britain	5:24.20	Netherlands	5:25.23	1.03
2022	Great Britain	5:24.41	Netherlands	5:25.52	1.11
2021	New Zealand	5:24.64	Germany	5:25.60	0.96
2019	Germany	5:19.41	Netherlands	5:19.96	0.55
2018	Germany	5:24.31	Australia	5:26.11	1.8
2017	Germany	5:26.85	United States	5:28.45	1.6
2016	Great Britain	5:29.63	Germany	5:30.96	1.33
2015	Great Britain	5:35.18	Germany	5:36.36	0.18
2014	Great Britain	5:24.11	Germany	5:24.77	0.66
2013	Great Britain	5:30.35	Germany	5:30.89	0.54
2012	Germany	5:48.75	Canada	5:49.98	1.23
2011	Germany	5:28.81	Great Britain	5:30.83	2.02
2010	Germany	5:33.84	Great Britain	5:34.46	0.62
2009	Germany	5:24.13	Canada	5:27.15	3.02
2008	Canada	5:23.89	Great Britain	5:25.11	1.22
2007	Canada	5:34.92	Germany	5:37.19	2.27
2006	Germany	5:21.85	Italy	5:23.29	1.44
2005	United States	5:22.75	Italy	5:24.01	1.26
2004	United States	5:42.48	Netherlands	5:43.75	1.27
2003	Canada	6:00.44	United States	6:01.46	1.02
2002	Canada	5:26.92	Germany	5:28.16	1.24
2001	Romania	5:27.48	Croatia	5:28.47	0.99
2000	Great Britain	5:33.08	Australia	5:33.88	0.8
1999	United States	6:01.58	Great Britain	6:03.27	1.69
1998	United States	5:38.78	Germany	5:39.48	0.7
1997	United States	5:27.20	Romania	5:27.76	0.56
1996	Netherlands	5:42.74	Germany	5:44.58	1.84
1995	Germany	5:53.40	Netherlands	5:55.54	2.14
1994	United States	5:24.50	Netherlands	5:25.10	0.6
1993	Germany	5:37.08	Romania	5:39.33	2.25
1992	Canada	5:29.53	Romania	5:29.67	0.14
1991	Germany	5:50.98	Canada	5:51.68	0.7
1990	RFA	5:26.62	Canada	5:27.57	0.95
1989	RFA	5:43.88	RDA	5:45.70	1.82
1988	RFA	5:46.05	URS	5:48.01	1.96
1987	United States	5:58.83	Germany	6:01.94	3.11
1986	Australia	5:33.54	URS	5:37.61	4.07
1985	URS	5:33.71	Italy	5:34.58	0.87
1984	Canada	5:41.32	United States	5:41.74	0.42
1983	New Zealand	5:43.39	RDA	5:35.94	1.55
1982	New Zealand	5:36.99	RDA	5:39.17	2.18
1981	URS	6:02.30	Great Britain	6:04.31	2.01
1980	RDA	5:49.05	Great Britain	5:51.92	2.87
1979	RDA	5:36.41	New Zealand	5:39.92	3.51
1978	RDA	5:54.25	RFA	5:55.17	0.92
1977	RDA	5:45.36	URS	5:50.71	5.35
				Average	1.9
				Standard Deviation	1.0