A Fantastic Evening of Celebrations

Published Tue 27 Oct 2026

The 2026 Rower of the Year Awards, held on October 23 at the East Fremantle Yacht Club, saw 120 rowers, coaches, volunteers, BRO's, Life Members and Rowing WA Partners come together to celebrate the successes of 2026 for rowing in WA!

This year we took the event to the next level, and it certainly made a difference, creating a memorable evening worthy of the achievements and contributions of our rowing community.

Our Emcee Nicholas Tejchman entertained the crowd throughout the evening and did a phenomenal job guiding us through proceedings. Thank you, Nicholas, for bringing such energy and personality to the night.

A big thank you also goes to our wonderful venue for hosting us, Mia Mammoliti for capturing the evening through her photography, and One 20 Productions for providing our AV support and helping elevate the presentation of the event, including the exciting burst of sparks for our final awards! Click here for the full album

One of the highlights of the evening was hearing from the crew of WA’s Under 19 Women’s Four in a panel discussion about their experiences both on and off the water. Thank you to Oceane, Olivia and Stella for sharing their stories and insights with us. Unfortunately, Charlotte has returned to the USA and was unable to join us on the night.

A special thank you also goes to Glen Loftus, whose Spirit of Rowing speech provided a fitting and heartfelt way to round out the evening, reflecting on the values, connections and shared passion that make our rowing community so special.

We are incredibly grateful to our major sponsor, Perfect Balance Rowing (PBR), and event sponsor, RowGear, for their continued support. It was also wonderful to have Mark Bozich from RowGear with us to present the donated pair of sculling oars to the winner of the Novice Sculler Award.

Rowing WA would also like to acknowledge and thank our Partners who have supported us across the year:

The State government through the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport is a major supporter of Rowing Western Australia.
Major Partners: City of Armadale, Lavan and Perfect Balance Rowing
Strategic Partners: Sports West, WAIS, Venues West and Rowing Australia
Official Uniform supplier: The Regatta Shop

To our award winners, congratulations on your achievements. To everyone nominated, being recognised by your rowing community is an achievement in itself. And to everyone who contributes their time, energy and passion to our sport, thank you for making rowing in Western Australia what it is.

Award Winners

RWA Volunteer of the Year - Catriona Walker (WARC)

Club Volunteer of the Year - Megan Bagworth (UWABC)

BRO Encouragement Award - Paul Tetley (Level 2)

BRO of the Year - Luke Forsyth (Level 3)

Club Coach of the Year - David Moharich (SRRC)

Coach of the Year - Tom Gatti (WAIS)

Male Masters Rower of the Year - Greg Haig (CUBC)

Female Masters Rower of the Year - Orla Flecker (UWABC)

Age Oarsman of the Year - Lachlan Brown (WARC)

Age Oarswoman of the Year - Charlotte Hansen-Knarhoi (FRC) & Stella Wandel (WARC)

Oarsman of the Year - Johnson Daubney (SRRC)

Oarswoman of the Year - Bronwyn Cox (UWABC)

Novice Sculling Award - Swan River Rowing Club

Neil Smith Memorial Male Sculling Ladder Champion - Tom Jones (WARC)

Lynne Bayliss Female Sculling Ladder Champion - Emma Pittman (SRRC)

Head Race Pennant - ANA Rowing Club

Masters Pennant - ANA Rowing Club

D Grade Pennant - University of WA Boat Club

C Grade Pennant - University of WA Boat Club

B Grade Pennant - University of WA Boat Club

A Grade Pennant - University of WA Boat Club

Premiership Pennant - University of WA Boat Club

Champion Club of the Year - Perth Rowing Club

The evening was about celebrating the people in our community! Congratulations to all our rowers, coaches, volunteers, BROs, clubs and supporters who have contributed to another tremendous year of rowing in WA. Yeah WA!

Full album here

Provided by: Rowing WA | Mia Mammoliti

A Fantastic Evening of Celebrations

Gallery