UAlbany Adding Women's Rowing

a women's rowing team is seated in a row boat with Albany Crew written on the back of their shirts.
Women's rowing has been chosen as UAlbany's 19th NCAA Division I sport, with the team set to debut in the fall of 2024. (Photo by Mark McCarty)

ALBANY, N.Y. (August 8, 2023) — The University at Albany has announced that women's rowing has been chosen as the Great Danes' 19th NCAA Division I sport. After a full year of acclimation, regular season competition will begin in the fall of 2024.

"We are excited to announce the addition of women's rowing as our newest program," said UAlbany Director of Athletics Mark Benson. "This will provide a significant number of opportunities for women student-athletes. Rowing is a sport with a strong and historical presence in the Northeast, which makes for a great geographical fit combined with our proximity to nearby waterways."

The addition of rowing comes as the University also makes significant investments to other areas central to the student experience and academic excellence, including new faculty, new academic programs, new research opportunities, and new and renovated recreational and residential facilities. The program will attract high-achieving student-athletes from across the country and increase the number of competitive opportunities available to women athletes, with roster sizes ranging from 40-60 on average.

"Great competition makes Great Danes, and our new women's rowing program will attract bright minds and fierce competitors to UAlbany's already formidable roster of scholar-athletes," said University at Albany President Havidán Rodríguez. "This program will provide excellent opportunities for our students while adding to the Capital Region's already vibrant rowing community. I look forward to watching UAlbany shells racing up and down our beautiful Hudson River."

A short drive from the UAlbany campus, the Hudson River currently serves as one of the nation's premier venues for the rowing community, serving as a home venue for a plethora of regattas and NCAA teams in the state of New York. The addition of a Division I program in the city of Albany will complement an already robust rowing community that has been rooted in the Capital Region for years.

Women's Rowing Timeline

A national search for the Great Danes' inaugural rowing coach is underway. The new coaching staff will begin the recruiting process to sign the program's first-ever class over the 2023-24 academic year, with the first season of competition beginning in the fall of 2024. Additional details pertaining to the program will be released throughout the upcoming year.

  • August 2023: Head coaching search begins
  • Summer 2023-24: Recruitment of UAlbany's first rowing class begins
  • August 2024: UAlbany Rowing student-athletes arrive on campus
  • 2024-25 Academic Year: First season of competition

UAlbany Athletics

UAlbany is a member of the America East Conference in 16 of 18 varsity sports, while women's golf is an associate member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. The University's football team, a Division I Football Championship Subdivision program, is an associate member of the Coastal Athletic Association.

UAlbany has earned the Stuart P. Haskell Jr. Commissioner's Cup, which honors the America East's top-performing athletics department, eight times overall, including six-straight years from 2013-2018. UAlbany has won 127 conference championships and has made 59 NCAA Tournament appearances since moving to Division I in 1999.