The exceptional talent of Katherine Williams and Paige Badenhorst in the women’s double constitutes the women’s contingent of the six-athlete strong South African rowing team gearing up for their upcoming journey to Lucerne in Switzerland, competing to qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
This will be the RMB National Rowing Squad’s final chance to grab a spot for the Games in July and August, and the combined team is set to depart South Africa for Switzerland on Monday, 13 May.
With seven boats entered in the women’s double entries, and the first- and second-placed boats to secure their place at the Olympics, that makes it five crews for Williams and Badenhorst to beat, to win an Olympic dream.
The Final Olympic Qualification Regatta is held at the Rotsee Lake from Sunday 19 to Tuesday 21 May, and offers only two qualification places per boat class for the Summer Olympics – the very last chance for athletes to secure their spot.
The regatta is infamously dubbed “The Regatta of Death” by the World Rowing community, due to the extreme set of emotions on display at the event. There will be those who rejoice in their qualification success, and others who will go home having missed out.
The RMB National Squad states that they are positive and confident, with both the women’s double and the men’s four having had an excellent training block at their winter base camp in Tzaneen, Limpopo, in the lead-up to the event.
“The team have prepared exceptionally well and really hard. We arrive in Lucerne with ‘plenty nerves’ and a little more excitement. Our goal is to qualify two more boats for Paris Olympic Games and there is no better place to give it our best shot than on the Rotsee.
National Rowing Squad Head Coach, Tiago Loureiro
“We need our country’s support as both crews strive to leave it all out there on the Lake of Gods,” said Loureiro.
Catch the racing live stream on World Rowing
Original Content: Angelfish PR, with editing by gsport
Photo Caption: Five to beat for a Paris 2024 berth as elite SA rowing women’s double Katherine Williams and Paige Badenhorst’s depart for Switzerland with Team SA in their final chance to qualify for Paris 2024 at World Rowing’s ‘Regatta of Death’ on Monday. Photo: Supplied
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