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Leeming, Meeks Claim Silver at U23 World Championships
7/28/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Crew
PLOVIDV, Bulgaria - Hunter Leeming '15 (Sarasota, Fla.) and Finn Meeks '17 (Lake Forest, Ill.) of the Brown men's crew helped the United States earn the silver medal in the men's heavyweight eight at the U23 World Rowing Championships on Sunday.
The United States boat finished runner-up in Sunday's final in a time of 5:36.49, just behind Germany at 5:33.56. Russia took the bronze medal at 5:38.32. The United States finished second in its heat and then won the repechage to move on to the final.
"It's always hard at these races," said Leeming. "A lot of time people just assume you just want to go to say you went. However I felt like we went to win, and I felt like we had a chance. When it came down to it, we were a little bit short. Having said that, I am incredibly proud of the way we raced in the final. I feel like we performed well and had a good race."
Leeming, who recently graduated with a degree in International Relations and rowed in the seventh seat at Worlds, picked up a silver medal for the second time in three years after he helped the American crew to a second-place finish in 2013. Meeks, an Economics concentrator who manned the bow seat, participated at the World Championships for the first time in his career.
Leeming and Meeks were members of the Brown varsity eight boat that placed fourth overall at the 2015 IRA National Championship this past spring. Both rowers were part of Brown's Ivy League-leading 15 honorees selected to the IRA All-Academic Team.
"I have raced with a lot of these guys before, but it felt great to have two brown oarsmen in the boat," said Leeming. "To be able to share this experience with someone that I have rowed with so much makes it even better. Finn is an incredible oarsmen and I will miss racing with him, but I am extremely excited to watch him grow because I know he will do amazing things at brown and beyond."
The spots for the eight and four boats were determined at the under-23 selection camp, where 24 of the top collegiate rowers in the country gathered to train during four weeks in June.
(BM8+) U23 Men's Eight – Final
- 1. Germany 5:33.560
- 2. USA 5:36.490
- 3. Russia 5:38.320
- 4. Romania 5:40.130
- 5. Great Britain 5:43.740
- 6. France 5:49.860
Photo courtesy of USRowing
