Eights, Women

The American Women’s Eight had not lost a World Championship or Olympic race since 2005. In Rio they dominated their competition and, in the final, broke away in the second half of the race to claim gold easily. This meant that the real competition was for silver and bronze, and several nations could lay claim to the title of contender: Romania (2013 and 2014 European Champion, 2013 World runner-up, and 2015 European bronze medalist), Great Britain (2016 European Champion and 2014 European runner-up), the Netherlands (2015 and 2016 European runner-up) and Canada (2014 World runner-up and 2013 and 2015 bronze medalist).

The opening heats were won by the United States and Great Britain, with Canada dominating the repêchage round by a substantial margin. Canada and the Netherlands led the field during the first half of the final but, after the Americans charged ahead, both nations began to fade. Great Britain, who had been last at the halfway mark, undertook a substantial surge forward that earned them a silver medal in a photo finish 0.12 seconds ahead of the Romanians. Canada and the Netherlands, having exhausted their energy, finished fifth and sixth as they were passed at the end by New Zealand.