After five days of racing, the Ohio State rowing program’s six representatives at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics have concluded their Olympic outings.
This year’s Olympics represented a historical showing for the Ohio State rowing program. Sisters Maria and Anetta Kyridou are the first Buckeye rowers to race at the Olympic Games before getting to campus. Alessandra Montesano became the first student-athlete in program history to compete at the Olympics during her eligibility at Ohio State.
All six Buckeyes made it to the finals of their respective events and while one reached the podium, four total were in contention for Olympic medals.
Ilse Paulis became Ohio State’s first medalist of the 2020 Olympic Games with a bronze medal finish in the Women’s Lightweight Double for the Netherlands. The Dutch pair put on a dominant performance in the final race as Paulis earned her second Olympic medal of her career.
Alessandra Montesano finished fourth with Italy’s Women’s Quad. After the Italian boat missed the final cut in the opening heats, the team earned a second-place finish in the repechage race to advance to the event A final.
Maria Kyridou and her partner in the Women’s Pair raced into the Olympic finals after finishing first in the repechage and A/B semifinal. The duo earned an Olympic and world-best time of 6:48.70 in the A/B semifinal. Ultimately, Kyridou earned a fifth-place finish for Greece.
Aina Cid Centelles and her Women’s Pair partner finished in sixth place for Spain. The boat took third in its opening heat to qualify for the A/B semifinal and went on to finish third in the semifinal race for a spot in the event A final.
Elodie Ravera and France’s Women’s Double opened the Olympic Games with a third-place finish in heats to qualify for the A/B semifinal. The boat took fourth in the semifinals and went on to take eighth overall after competing in the B final.
Anneta Kyridou took 10th in the Women’s Single for Greece. In her first race in Tokyo, she took third in her heat to qualify for quarterfinals. Earning a third-place finish in her quarterfinal, Kyridou secured a spot in the A/B semifinal. She went on to finish sixth in the semifinals for a spot in the B final, where she raced to a fourth-place finish.
