Gainesville Area Rowing (GAR) delivered another milestone performance at the 2026 USRowing Southeast Youth Championships on May 8-10 in Sarasota, qualifying three boats for the 2026 USRowing Youth National Championships.

According to a press release, leading the way for GAR was the Men’s Youth 4-, which captured a Southeast Regional Championship with a first-place finish and automatic qualification to nationals.

The Women’s Youth 4x secured a fourth-place finish to earn its spot at nationals, while the Men’s U17 4+ also advanced to the national stage with a fourth-place finish.

The USRowing Youth National Championships are scheduled for June 11–14 at Nathan Benderson Park in Sarasota.

Members of the Men’s Youth 4- championship boat included:

• Eli Wells
• Mason Turek
• Branan Andreau
• Beckett Kallman

Members of the Women’s Youth 4x boat included:

• Annie Massini 
• Brooklyn Hilman 
• Sadie Parker
• Eva Bailey

Members of the Men’s U17 4+ boat included:

• Owen Poynor
• Ben Jones
• Wesley Loyd
• Parker Krzykowski 
• Coxswain: Emma Jones

“This weekend was a tremendous reflection of the commitment and resilience of our athletes,” said Garrett Bauer in a press release. “To qualify three boats for Youth Nationals out of one of the toughest regions in the country is an incredible accomplishment for our program.”

The performance continues the rapid rise of Gainesville Area Rowing on both the regional and national stage. In 2025, GAR recorded one of its strongest-ever performances at the USRowing Youth National Championships, highlighted by a silver medal finish in the women’s pair and multiple national placements.

Earlier this spring, GAR also captured two Florida State Championships at the FRSA Sweep State Championships in the Men’s Varsity 4+ and Women’s 2nd Varsity 4+, earning five total medals across seven competing boats.

This season’s success has come despite significant challenges, including relocating training operations to Lake Santa Fe in Melrose because of ongoing drought conditions affecting local waterways, according to the release.

Founded in Gainesville, Florida, Gainesville Area Rowing continues to grow as one of the Southeast’s emerging youth rowing programs, developing middle school and high school athletes while competing at the highest levels of the sport.

GAR will also host its summer “Learn to Row” camp for new athletes interested in the sport. More information is available at Gainesville Area Rowing Summer Camp Registration.

For more information about Gainesville Area Rowing, visit Gainesville Area Rowing.