FAB FOUR: Former Princeton University men’s heavyweight rowing star Nick Mead 17, far left, competes in the U.S. men’s four. Last Sunday, Mead helped the four place first in its opening heat at the Paris 2024 Olympics. The U.S. will go for a gold medal as it competes in the A final on August 1 at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium. (Photo by Row2k, provided courtesy of USRowing)

By Bill Alden

As the Paris 2024 Olympics got underway last weekend, Princeton University rowing alums put themselves in medal contention with a number of superb performances.

Last Sunday, Nick Mead ’17 helped the U.S four win its opening heat and advance to the A final on August 1 as it earned a shot at a medal. Rowing from the bow seat, Mead helped the boat post a winning time of 6:04.95 over the 2,000-meter course at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium. Anther Tiger alum, Timothy Masters ’15, rowed for the Australian four that took second in the same heat as it also put itself in position to compete for a spot on the podium.

Hannah Scott ’21 and Great Britain set the tone early in the women’s quad sculls, winning its heat with the top time overall to advance to the A final on July 31. Scott, rowing in the second seat, and her teammates led throughout the race, crossing the finish line first in a time of 6:13.35 which was just under two seconds ahead of Germany.

A second Olympic experience opened in superb fashion for Tom George ’18 as he stroked Great Britain to a win in the heats of the men’s pair to move on to the A/B semifinals on July 31.

George, a 2021 Olympic bronze medalist in the eight, and his teammate Oliver Wynne-Griffith posted a winning time of 6:33.88. South Africa was second — almost three seconds behind the British crew — and Germany was five seconds behind in third to secure the other two transfer spots to the A/B semis.

Former Princeton open crew stars Kelsey Reelick ’14 and Emily Kallfelz ’19 took the hard route to the A final in the U.S. women’s four. The boat, which is guided by Tiger open head coach Lori Dauphiny, placed fourth in its opening heat last Sunday, sending it to the repechage round on Tuesday. Coming from behind, the U.S. edged China to take first place in the heat and qualify for the A final on August 1 and earn a shot at the podium. The U.S. clocked a winning time of 6:32.48 with China coming in at 6:33.60.

In the women’s eight, Claire Collins ’19 helped U.S. women’s eight finish second in its opening heat last Monday, posting a time of 6:19.00 in a race that saw Romania take first in 6:12.31. The U.S. will compete in a repechage on August 1.

Over at the Aquatics Centre, Ashleigh Johnson’17 and Jovana Sekulic ’26 starred as the U.S. women’s water polo team got off to a strong start in its quest for a fourth straight gold medal. In its opening contest of Group B action, the U.S. defeated Greece 15-6 last Saturday as Sekulic tallied two goals in her Olympic debut and stalwart goalie Johnson, playing in her third Olympics, made 11 saves. On Monday, in a rematch of the gold medal final at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, the U.S. fell 13-11 to Spain as Johnson made 13 saves and Sekulic scored a goal. The U.S. will look to get back in the winning track when it faces Italy on July 31 to continue Pool B play.

On the fencing strip at the Grand Palais, Princeton rising sophomore Hadley Husisian earned a win for the U.S. in her Olympic debut last Monday as she defeated Switzerland’s Pauline Brunner 12-11 in the women’s individual épée Round of 32. Husisian went on to fall 15-12 to Hong Kong’s Vivian Kong Man Wai, the eventual gold medalist, in the Round of 16.

Husisian competed as a freshman during the 2022-23 school year, finishing third at the 2023 NCAA championships, before taking 2023-24 off for Olympic prep. Husisian, together with fellow Tiger Katharine Homes ‘17, will be part of the four-member U.S. women’s épée team that was slated to compete on July 30.

Another Princeton rising sophomore, Tatiana Nazlymov, nearly matched Husisian’s feat but came up just short in her Olympic debut, falling 15-14 to Sebin Choi of South Korea in the women’s saber Round of 32.

Competing in his third Olympics for Egypt, former Princeton standout Mohamed Hamza got off to a good start as he edged Jan Jurkiewicz of Poland 15-14 in the men’s foil Round of 32 last Monday. Hamza went to defeat Carlos Llavador of Spain 15-12 in the Round of 16. Hamza’s run ended when the fell 15-9 to Felippo Macchi of Italy in the Round of 8.

Over at the Yves-du-Manoir Stadium, Beth Yeager ’26 and the U.S. women’s field hockey got off to a rough start as they fell 4-1 to Argentina in the first game of Pool B play last Saturday. On Monday Yeager helped the Americans rebound from that setback as they earned a 1-1 draw against Spain.

The U. S. plays against Australia on July 31 before finishing the Pool play with games against Great Britain and South Africa. The top four teams in each of the two groups will advance to the quarterfinals, and the Americans are currently fourth, ahead of Great Britain and South Africa, who are both 0-2-0. Argentina and Australia are both 2-0-0 for six points, while Spain has a win and tie for four points.