The various final events were a display of sheer excitement: Eighteen nations reached the podium, with eleven of them taking gold. Germany emerged as the standout performer, collecting four golds, one silver, and three bronzes. Not far behind, Great Britain matched Germany’s gold count and added a bronze to their tally, making a formidable statement.

In the lightweight single sculls, excitement reached its peak. Australia’s Grace Sypher, who had narrowly missed the top spot in previous years, finally clinched gold in her third World U23 Championship. Meanwhile, Spain’s Caetano Hora Pombo, a seasoned Olympian, edged out Italy’s Giovanni Borgonovo to claim victory and halt the Italian's title defence.

Great Britain dominated the coxless fours, with the women’s team setting a new World Championship Best Time and the men’s crew successfully overcoming a strong challenge from Australia to retain their title.

In the lightweight women’s double sculls, Greece’s Dimitra Kontou and Evangelia Anastasiadou pulled away from their Italian rivals with a commanding performance. Kontou, who had previously earned bronze at the Paris 2024 Olympics, led her crew to a decisive victory. Ireland’s Ciaran Purdy and Donnacha Keeley also impressed, drawing inspiration from Olympic champions Paul O’Donovan and Fintan McCarthy to win gold in their event.

In the Olympic sweep events, the British women’s eight completed a remarkable performance. They set a blistering pace from the outset, finishing nearly two seconds ahead of the defending champions from the USA and solidifying their dominance.

Germany continued an impressive run by clinching gold in both single sculls categories. Timo Strache, a previous bronze medallist in the men’s U23 double sculls, triumphed with a time of 6:42.08, setting a new World Championship Best Time by 0.89 seconds. 

Meanwhile, Alexandra Foester also shone, winning gold and breaking her own World Championship Best Time by an impressive 5.83 seconds, preventing Switzerland’s Aurelia-Maxima Janzen from defending her title.

The final U23 event saw Great Britain’s men’s eight secure their fourth gold of the day. Despite fierce competition from the USA, who trailed by just 0.37 seconds at both the 500m and 1,000m marks, the British crew surged ahead in the final stretch to successfully defend their title.

As the U23 races concluded, the spotlight now shifts to the senior finals in non-Olympic and Paralympic boat classes, scheduled for today, 24 August. Tomorrow, the U19 finals will take centre stage, promising even more thrilling contests as young athletes vie for top honours in the remaining events.