Prendes ’11 and Nase ’13 Advance to Semifinals behind New Zealand

The Men’s Lightweight Four got underway on Day 1 at the 2016 Rio Olympics, with two Princetonians, Robin Prendes ’11 and Tyler Nase '13 in action. Joined by fellow Americans Anthony Fahden and Edward King, Nase and Prendes helped the U.S. contingent safely advance to the semifinals of the competition in the third and final heat of the day, traversing 2,000 meters of the gorgeous Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon. The team finished in second place with a time of 6:05.61, behind favorites New Zealand, who won the heat with a time of 6:03.34. The top three teams in each heat automatically advance to a semifinal, with the lower order finishers contending for the last couple of semifinal slots in the repechage.

Prendes and Fahden were both part of the Men’s Lightweight Four Olympic effort at the 2012 London Games, where they unfortunately came up short of winning a medal in the semifinal stages after fighting hard to win the repechage. The U.S. Men are considered outsiders in the race behind perennial powerhouses Denmark, France, and Great Britain, but after capturing the first World Rowing Cup medal for the U.S. in this event since 2003, the quartet led by veteran leadership of Prendes is poised to make a run in the coming days.