17-Year-Old Estonians Win U19 Rowing World Championship Gold

Estonian rowers Endrik Hansen and Riko Raimond Kubja have made history by winning the gold medal at the U19 World Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. The 17-year-old duo triumphed in the double sculls event, bringing home Estonia's first U19 world title in rowing in twenty years.

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The race was tough, but the final sprint saved it. At 500 meters, we saw it was doable, and at the kilometer mark, we felt we were in the big game. The last 200 meters, we just had to give everything.

Hansen and Kubja completed the 2000-meter course in 6 minutes and 18.60 seconds, holding off a strong challenge from Great Britain, who finished just 0.63 seconds behind. The Estonian pair had to fight hard in the final stretch, with Hansen crediting a powerful finishing sprint for their victory.

"The race was tough, but the final sprint saved it," Hansen said after the race. "At 500 meters, we saw it was doable, and at the kilometer mark, we felt we were in the big game. The last 200 meters, we just had to give everything."

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All the races were tough, and the boys tilted them in their favor. They did it very coolly.

Great Britain took silver with a time of 6:19.23, while a boat representing individual neutral athletes secured bronze in 6:19.57. The winning time was also remarkably close to the youth world record, falling just 0.41 seconds short.

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The goal was the final. The medal was a bonus in that sense.

This historic win is particularly significant for Estonian rowing. The last time Estonia secured an U19 world gold in this discipline was in 2006, when Kaisa Pajusalu and Jevgenia Rõndina achieved the feat. The competitive field this year, with 33 boats participating, made the victory even more hard-earned. Coach Matti Killing praised Hansen and Kubja's development throughout the competition, noting their ability to win tough races.

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A couple of months ago, I wouldn't even have believed I was going to the World Championships. But as we got closer, we started to dream more and felt that anything was possible.