Paris Olympics 2024: NZOC to delay announcing men’s rowing pair after surprise result

New Zealand men’s coxless Pair Taylor (stroke) and Campbell Crouch (bow) at the 2024 World Rowing Cup II Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland. Photo / Photosport

A men’s pair will be missing when the New Zealand Olympic Committee announces its rowing squad selected for the Paris Games on Tuesday afternoon.

A shock result at last weekend’s World Cup regatta in Lucerne saw New Zealand’s number two pairing of Campbell Crouch and Ben Taylor upset the top pairing of Phillip Wilson and Dan Williamson by 1.26 seconds to win the B final.

Wilson and Williamson, who before the World Cup meet were largely expected to be automatic selections for Paris, finished ninth overall.

The unexpected result in the team’s first international regatta of the season has forced Rowing New Zealand to delay nominating its men’s pair for selection, and will instead wait until the next World Cup meet in Poland later this month to confirm which crew to nominate.

The men’s pair is one of nine boat classes New Zealand has qualified for Paris, and the rest of the eight crews will be formally announced by the NZOC at a ceremony alongside Lake Karapiro on Tuesday afternoon.

“Post World Cup II [in Lucerne] was when Rowing New Zealand considered nominating athletes to the Games Team. RNZ has since nominated eight of the nine qualified crews to the NZOC for consideration for selection,” a Rowing New Zealand spokesperson confirmed.

“The men’s pair nomination to the NZOC will be held over until after World Cup III in Poznan, Poland between June 14-16.”

Wilson and Williamson were a part of the gold medal-winning eight crew at the Tokyo Games, but with the absence of an eight crew for Paris, the duo linked up in the two-man boat through the recent summer season.

Rowing New Zealand sent the back-up pair of Crouch and Taylor to Lucerne to compete alongside Wilson and Williamson, who’ve dealt with injuries and a short timeframe to link up and prepare for the Olympics.

Both pairings will head to Poznan as part of a smaller squad for the final World Cup meet of the season, while other team members head home to continue preparations for Paris.

It gives Wilson and Williamson a final chance to bid for selection, with Rowing New Zealand selectors to then nominate to NZOC the pair it believes has the best chance of winning a medal at Paris.

The nomination then needs to be ratified by NZOC, on the condition the nominated crew is capable of achieving a top-16 position at the Olympics.