PRINCETON, N.J. - The United States Rowing Association recently announced its roster for the Under-23 Men's and Women's National Teams that will compete at the upcoming Under-23 World Rowing Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria starting July 19. After participating in selection camps, Mason Banks ('25), Lauren Day ('24) and Jackson Fuller ('23) have been chosen to represent the United States in a pair of competitions in Plovdiv with international glory on the line. The five-day regatta begins on Wednesday, July 19 with heat racing and will conclude on Sunday, July 23 with the finals. The competition will have 22 classifications of action and will be highlighted by Banks and Fuller racing in the lightweight pair event and Day in the women's eight. Overall, the U.S. has entries in 17 of the 22 events. The U-23 roster consists of athletes from 20 different states and 22 colleges and universities. 

The three athletes earned their way onto the national team via separate selection camps as Day tried out individually in Oklahoma City for nearly three weeks in June before being named to the women's eight boat, while Banks and Fuller tried out as a team in Sarasota, Florida and won their classification in dominate fashion as they finished more than 15 seconds ahead of GMS Rowing Center's Sean Christiansen and Luke Desmaison with a time of 6:43.56. Since winning a spot on the national team, Banks and Fuller have been training with the Craftsbury Green Racing Project in Vermont.

A two-time IRCA First Team All-American and recent graduate of the Naval Academy, Fuller spearheads the trio of Mids that will be in action in Bulgaria this week. During his four years racing for the Navy Lightweight Rowing program, the Winter Park, Florida native was a member of the Mids' first varsity eight from day one and helped the boat to the 2021 IRA National Championship and a runner-up result at the 2022 national regatta. This past June, Fuller and Navy's first varsity eight finished the IRA National Championship in fourth place as they were edged off the podium by just over 0.4 seconds by Penn. Fuller rowed from the stroke seat throughout the 2023 campaign. 

Banks, a native of Westport, Connecticut, has raced alongside Fuller as a member of the Navy Lights' first varsity eight in each of the past two seasons in Annapolis. Just completing his sophomore year at the Academy, Banks has collected silver medals from both the 2022 Eastern Sprints and IRA National Championships and a bronze from this spring's Eastern Sprints. A rising junior at the Naval Academy, Banks rowed the majority of the 2023 spring campaign from the bow seat of the first varsity boat.

"Training has been going really well and we are very grateful for our hosts and coaches, Green Racing Project," commented Banks. "We are extremely honored to represent the U.S. and our goal is to win our category of the lightweight pair. We are really looking forward to racing this week against the best in the world!" 

A three-year member of Navy women's first varsity eight crew, Day has had an award-winning career so far representing the Mids. Beginning with her freshman season in 2021, Day and Navy's V8 won the Patriot League Championship and was named the conference's Boat of the Year before coming back in 2022 and capturing bronze at the league's year-end regatta. This past May, Day and the Mids were back atop the podium as they finished strong and came from behind to place first at the Patriot League Championship. For her efforts over those three previously mentioned championships, the Seattle native has garnered Second Team All-Patriot League nods in 2021 and 2022 before being recognized on the league's first team in 2023. Additionally, Day's success as a junior in 2023 resulted in her recently being named a 2023 Honorable Mention Pocock All-American.

The 2023 United States' Under-23 Women's Eight crew consists of Duke's Megan Lee in the stroke seat, Rutger's Hannah Heideveld in the seventh seat, Yale's Mia Levy in the sixth seat, Oregon State's Evan Park in the fifth seat, Oklahoma's Lale Edil in the fourth seat, Brown's Dahlia Levine in the third seat, Day in the second seat and Brown's Olivia Vavasour in the bow. Rutger's Victoria Grieder will serve as the coxswain for the W8.

"I am extremely humbled and honored to represent the United States and the Naval Academy at Worlds," remarked Day. "It's kind of surreal that I'm actually going to this race. I never really thought this was something I would ever do. In terms of representing the U.S., though, it feels very similar to being a Midshipman and representing the Navy/military in public. Walking through the airport in a USRowing polo feels strangely similar to walking through the airport in my summer whites plebe year, and I think that's because Team USA and the U.S. Navy garner similar amounts of respect and are held to a high standard in the eyes of the public. In that sense, I'm sure a lot of midshipman know what it means to represent something larger than yourself. Again, it's an honor and a privilege that I get to do that while also rowing. 

"I've never been to an event on this level. I'm excited to learn as much as possible, both from my teammates who have done this before and from the other U23 National Teams we race."

The Navy rowing program has had a host of recent success with athletes competing at the Under-23 World Championships as in 2021 the trio of Alexandria Vallancey-Martinson (WMN), Griffin Dunne (HWT) and Will Geib (HWT) came away with four combined medals while representing the United States. Vallancey-Martinson (USNA '21) won gold with the United States' women's eight crew and silver with the women's four boat, while Dunne ('22), collected a silver in men's eight action and Geib ('22) earned a bronze with the men's coxed four.