Grace Prendergast

Grace Prendergast, born on June 30, 1992, in Christchurch, New Zealand, emerged as a dominant figure in women’s sweep rowing. She initiated her rowing career in 2007 at Villa Maria College, progressing to the Avon Rowing Club. Her talent quickly became evident, leading to her selection for the New Zealand junior team in 2010. That same year, she secured a gold medal at the World Rowing Junior Championships in Račice, Czech Republic, as part of the junior women’s four. Prendergast continued to develop through the Rowing Performance Centre system, competing at the U23 level and joining the elite women’s eight by 2013.

A pivotal moment in Prendergast’s career occurred in 2014 when she formed a coxless pair with Kerri Gowler. This partnership proved highly successful, yielding a gold medal at the World Rowing U23 Championships with a new World Rowing U23 Championship best time. Following this, the duo joined the women’s four at the elite World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam, where they won a world championship title and set a new world-best time of 6:14.36, a record that still stands. Her consistent performance allowed her to qualify two boats for the 2016 Olympic Games, competing in both the eight and pair, earning two silver medals at the 2015 World Rowing Championships.

Prendergast’s pursuit of excellence led her to the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where she achieved significant success. She and Kerri Gowler set a new world record in the semi-final of the women’s pair at 6:47.41, culminating in an Olympic gold medal. Additionally, she secured a silver medal with the women’s eight. Post-Olympics, Prendergast advanced her academic career, completing a Master’s at the University of Cambridge and participating in the 2022 Cambridge vs. Oxford Boat Race, which her crew won. She retired from professional rowing in October 2022, having earned 15 premier national titles and being ranked as the highest female rower in the world in both 2019 and 2021 by the World Rowing Federation.