ARION 2025 Recap

Coming off the Olympic year of 2024, ARION entered 2025 eager to prove future generations of Elite rowers are grown here at SRA.  Since inception, some of our standing goals have been:

• Multiple ARION boats within 4% of the top GMS in domestic competition

• 1 or 2 first time USA Sr. team athletes from the ARION program

• ARION representation on an international podium racing as USA

To achieve these goals we invest deeply not only in helping the athletes from nationally successful to internationally successful.  We also invest in developing the next class of top athletes in the USA.  Our goals represent the path from being a contender in the USA to showing up on the world stage to contending on the world stage.

ARION's 2025 u23 program

To that end, 2025 included a deep investment in the summer U23 program as well as a new “Gap Year” program for a talented 18-year-old.  We believe these investments are important to build the pipeline of athletes who will someday pursue elite athletics.  Both of those programs we counted as big successes in 2025 with 4 athletes from the program joining the ARION team and our “Gap Year” student Yaara heading off to Stanford University in the fall.  Additionally, from 2025 we count the addition of Michael Orr as an assistant ARION coach and a U23 coach as an important addition to the program.

Towards the first goal listed above, at the winter speed order in March we had 6 athletes finish within 4% of the top domestic time, and at the fall speed order in November we had 5 athletes fall within 4% of the top domestic time.  With regards to the second goal, Katy Flynn and Hannah Heideveld made their first Senior National team.  They joined Lauren O’Connor who was racing for her third year on the National team and her first year in the single. And finally, toward the final goal, Audrey Boersen won gold at the World Beach Sprints Championships.

While the results are a big part of elite rowing, what we take pride in as the organization is the process.  2025 was a great year for the team as we logged millions of meters together on the water and the rowing machines, thousands of pounds lifted at the training center and thousands of miles together on the bikes and running (I think our team has run the fitch loop enough you can see the pavement worn from our sneakers).  We were also able to institute regular meetings with a sports psych/mental performance coach and a post practice snack table to ensure the athletes are fueled and have a place to debrief before heading off to work.  

Heading into the fall of 2025 we welcomed a new class of ARION athletes including:  Oona Zilavy, Amanda Triebensee, Sophia Hahn, Sophia Ortega, Sydney Freiberger, James Schmidt, and Zoey Goodness.  We want to especially note that James and Zoey rowed for the SRA Juniors while they were in high school.  We are so excited to see them back in the fold.

And finally, as we finish up 2025 we wish Lauren O’Connor and Katy Flynn well as they head off to an altitude training camp at the US Olympic Training center in Colorado Springs for the few weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas.