Women’s Rowing’s Louise Dinard & Femke de Witt To Compete at World U23 Championships
Jul 17 | Women's Rowing
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – A pair of Rutgers women's rowers will be representing their home countries at the upcoming World Rowing Under-23 Championships being held July 23-26 in Duisburg, Germany.
Femke de Witt will sit in the bow seat for the Netherlands' women's four, while Louise Dinard will be the stroke for France's pair entry.
De Witt, a rising junior with the Scarlet Knights, is making her second World U23 Championships appearance after placing seventh with the Netherlands' 8 at the 2025 championships. This past season, de Witt helped Rutgers' Second Varsity 8 win the C final and place 13th overall at the NCAA Championships and capture silver at the Big Ten Championships. In her first season "On The Banks" in 2025, de Witt was named an All-Big Ten Freshman as Rutgers' Varsity 4 was 2.3 seconds away from the program's first national medal with a fifth-place performance at the NCAA Championship and took silver at the Big Ten Championship. Also on the international scene, de Witt qualified for head-to-head racing in the Island Challenge Cup at the 2025 Henley Royal Regatta.
Dinard, a rising senior on the Rutgers roster, will be making her World U23 Championship debut. Prior to arriving "On The Banks", Dinard was a French U17 champion in pairs and runner-up in the four and a two-time selection for France for the Coupe de la Jeunesse. Also internationally, she helped the Scarlet Knights capture the Island Challenge Cup at the 2025 Henley Royal Regatta, outlasting 43 other entries while winning five head-to-head races on the River Thames. This past season, Dinard helped the Varsity 8 place fifth in the petite final and 11th overall at the NCAA Championships and repeat as silver medalists at the Big Ten Championships. As a sophomore in 2025, she helped row the Varsity 8 to a runner-up performance in the petite final and eighth overall at the NCAA Championships and silver at the Big Ten Championships. In her freshman campaign in 2024, Dinard was a member of the Second Varsity 8 that took 14th overall at the NCAA Championships and third at the Big Ten Championships.
Rutgers has been well represented at the World U23 Championships under head coach Justin Price. The Scarlet Knights have had representation and medalists at the U23 World Championships in each year since 2018 (excluding the COVID-canceled 2020), totaling 11 medals.
2026:
Louise Dinard: France (2-)
Femke de Witt: Netherlands (4-)
2025:
Lily Wood: Great Britain (8+) – Gold
Victoria Grieder: Canada (8+) – Bronze
Chiara Saccomando: Germany (8+) – Fourth Place
Femke de Witt: Netherlands (8+) - Seventh Place
2024:
Chiara Saccomando: Germany (8+) – Bronze
2023:
Victoria Grieder: United States (8+) – Gold
Hannah Heideveld: United States (8+) – Gold
Chiara Saccomando: Germany (8+) – Silver
2022:
Femke Paulis: Netherlands (4x) – Gold
Hannah Heideveld: United States (8+) – Gold
2021:
Femke Paulis: Netherlands (8+) – Silver
Karen Brandner: Austria (2-)
2019:
Ella Toa: Great Britain (4x) – Gold
Sarah Johanke: United States (2-) - Fourth
2018:
Sarah Johanek: United States (4+) - Gold
Follow Rutgers women's rowing on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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Femke de Witt will sit in the bow seat for the Netherlands' women's four, while Louise Dinard will be the stroke for France's pair entry.
De Witt, a rising junior with the Scarlet Knights, is making her second World U23 Championships appearance after placing seventh with the Netherlands' 8 at the 2025 championships. This past season, de Witt helped Rutgers' Second Varsity 8 win the C final and place 13th overall at the NCAA Championships and capture silver at the Big Ten Championships. In her first season "On The Banks" in 2025, de Witt was named an All-Big Ten Freshman as Rutgers' Varsity 4 was 2.3 seconds away from the program's first national medal with a fifth-place performance at the NCAA Championship and took silver at the Big Ten Championship. Also on the international scene, de Witt qualified for head-to-head racing in the Island Challenge Cup at the 2025 Henley Royal Regatta.
Dinard, a rising senior on the Rutgers roster, will be making her World U23 Championship debut. Prior to arriving "On The Banks", Dinard was a French U17 champion in pairs and runner-up in the four and a two-time selection for France for the Coupe de la Jeunesse. Also internationally, she helped the Scarlet Knights capture the Island Challenge Cup at the 2025 Henley Royal Regatta, outlasting 43 other entries while winning five head-to-head races on the River Thames. This past season, Dinard helped the Varsity 8 place fifth in the petite final and 11th overall at the NCAA Championships and repeat as silver medalists at the Big Ten Championships. As a sophomore in 2025, she helped row the Varsity 8 to a runner-up performance in the petite final and eighth overall at the NCAA Championships and silver at the Big Ten Championships. In her freshman campaign in 2024, Dinard was a member of the Second Varsity 8 that took 14th overall at the NCAA Championships and third at the Big Ten Championships.
Rutgers has been well represented at the World U23 Championships under head coach Justin Price. The Scarlet Knights have had representation and medalists at the U23 World Championships in each year since 2018 (excluding the COVID-canceled 2020), totaling 11 medals.
2026:
Louise Dinard: France (2-)
Femke de Witt: Netherlands (4-)
2025:
Lily Wood: Great Britain (8+) – Gold
Victoria Grieder: Canada (8+) – Bronze
Chiara Saccomando: Germany (8+) – Fourth Place
Femke de Witt: Netherlands (8+) - Seventh Place
2024:
Chiara Saccomando: Germany (8+) – Bronze
2023:
Victoria Grieder: United States (8+) – Gold
Hannah Heideveld: United States (8+) – Gold
Chiara Saccomando: Germany (8+) – Silver
2022:
Femke Paulis: Netherlands (4x) – Gold
Hannah Heideveld: United States (8+) – Gold
2021:
Femke Paulis: Netherlands (8+) – Silver
Karen Brandner: Austria (2-)
2019:
Ella Toa: Great Britain (4x) – Gold
Sarah Johanke: United States (2-) - Fourth
2018:
Sarah Johanek: United States (4+) - Gold
Follow Rutgers women's rowing on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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