Turkey to Host 2025 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals

The 2025 World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals will take place in Antalya, Türkiye, from November 6–9 as a replacement host after the event scheduled for Rio de Janeiro was postponed.

World Rowing said in a release that it received multiple expressions of interest in hosting the event before deciding on Antalya. Situated on the Mediterranean coast, Antalya had already been confirmed as the host of the 2025 European Rowing Coastal and Beach Sprint Championships, scheduled from October 8–13.

“The level of interest we received following the Rio cancellation was both encouraging and energising,” said World Rowing President Jean-Christophe Rolland. “With the discipline now on the Olympic programme for LA28 and the Youth Olympic Games coming up next year in Dakar, we felt it was absolutely essential to ensure that the 2025 Beach Sprint Finals could still go ahead. We are deeply grateful to the Turkish Rowing Federation and the local organisers in Antalya for stepping up with enthusiasm, flexibility and speed.”

The beach sprint event will be in the 2028 Olympic Summer Games in Los Angeles for the first time. The Sprint Finals were scheduled for Rio de Janeiro in October but in early June “despite extensive efforts by World Rowing to address significant delivery challenges, and following a recent decision by the Brazilian Rowing Federation (CBR) to withdraw from the organisation of the event, no viable local solution has been secured through alternative local stakeholders,” World Rowing said in a statement.

In May, the Brazilian Rowing Confederation announced it would cancel the event, which World Rowing said was a surprise to the organization and was announced without being informed of the decision. At the time, World Rowing said it considered the event would be taking place as planned.