From airport to racefloor in minutes: International competitors at the British Rowing Indoor Championships 2025
Extensive transport links make the NEC in Birmingham the ideal place to race, as people come from far and wide to tackle the challenge of BRIC
You don’t need to step a single foot outside to get from Birmingham International Airport and Rail Station to the British Rowing Indoor Championships race floor. With up to 250 flights coming into Birmingham Airport every day from over 130 direct destinations, the competition has already started to attract international competitors wanting to race from 6-7 December 2025.
Credit: Flights From
From the airport, competitors can simply take the free and fast air-rail link to Birmingham International Railway Station located at the upper level of Terminal 1. The train runs every two minutes and only takes 90 seconds.
The British Rowing Indoor Championships is the largest in-person indoor rowing event in the world. With 500m, 2000m and timed races on the Saturday, plus sprint and relay events on the Sunday, the stage is set for an epic showdown in Birmingham this winter.
Competitors of 29 nationalities are already entered to race as entries continue to roll in for the Championships. Current nationalities includet he Faroe Islands, Bermuda, New Zealand and Canada.
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Travelling from Norway’s Skullerud Sportsklubb Roing, Ole Karlesen is a familiar face at the British Rowing Indoor Championships. Last year he won every single event he entered, including all the Masters 1000m, 100m, 1 minute and 250m sprint events at Super Sprint Sunday. He’s a Norwegian, European and World Rowing Indoor Champion, a world record holder in team events, and will be looking to defend his titles in 2025.
Credit: EuropeanRailGuide.com
Sevtün Algan Sofyali is a sports medicine doctor and Turkish Masters record holder in both the 500m and 2000m events. She has medalled at the World Rowing Indoor Championships for the last three years – as the Worlds is confirmed as a virtual event, she’ll be aiming to put her mark on the BRIC race floor.
Zane McCormack from New Zealand is a member of the Spartan Chamber Indoor Rowing Club in Wellington – he’ll be returning to racing for the first time since 1994, when he rowed at the New Zealand Surf Life Saving Championships.
Famed for its beautiful vistas on the water, Varese Rowing Club will be fielding Danilo Marchetti, a 2024 Italian indoor rowing champion, to compete in the Masters 2000m and 500m races.
