Pritchard aims to complete gold medal set at World Champs

Benjamin Pritchard won gold at the 2024 Paris Paralympics and became European champion in May 2025

Paralympic champion Benjamin Pritchard says victory at the World Rowing Championships in Shanghai would complete the "top trump card" of major titles after a record-breaking season.

The 33-year-old Welshman became European champion for the first time in May, setting world records twice in three days in the PR1 men's single sculls in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

Pritchard posted 8min 47.88sec in his heat before lowering that to 8:40.38 in the final to secure gold.

"I'd have the European Championships, the Paralympic championships, and hopefully the World Championships, but it's never a done deal," he told BBC Sport Wales.

"I missed a lot of mid-season racing due to illness and injury, and I've watched my competitors go fast. It's always daunting when you don't know whether you've fallen behind or whether you're still there."

Pritchard begins his campaign in the heats at 03:25 BST on Monday, with the event running from 21 to 28 September.

Ruthless racing ahead

Changes to the World Championships schedule mean fewer opportunities to find form.

"It's pretty ruthless," Pritchard admitted. "I'll only have a heat and a final, so you've got to get it right on the first race of the day, and then hopefully you can learn from that and put it right in the final."

He added: "The PR1 field has really moved on. Six of us now have gone sub-nine minutes, that's a whole 'A' final, and four of those have gone sub-8:50. To be in with the medals you're going to have to be there or thereabouts."

Pritchard believes the level of competition is raising the bar for everyone.

"If you're being pushed from behind, then hopefully you can break barriers and set new world records and move the sport on again," he said.

"That's what I find fascinating about the PR1 field – it's continually moving. It's pretty special to see how fast the competitors are going, and I'm glad to play a small part in driving those standards forward."

Looking to Los Angeles

With Paris 2024 already behind him, thoughts inevitably turn to the Los Angeles Paralympics in 2028.

"It's still the million dollar question," said Pritchard. "Let's get Shanghai out of the way and then have a proper discussion with British Rowing."

This year has seen a different approach for the Welshman, who has been based much closer to home.

"British Rowing and UK Sport have allowed me the flexibility to train from Wales, so I've been doing a lot of my training on the River Tawe and in Swansea. Being at home, speaking Welsh with my daughter, speaking Welsh with the family – that's been really important."

Pritchard admits that support network could be a decisive factor in whether he continues.

"If I can continue to train this way then, yeah, definitely LA can be on the cards. But if it's something I can't continue, then I'm happy with finishing after China," he explained.

"Having that balance has been huge for me. It's not just about medals – it's about being able to live life at home, with family, and still perform at the highest level. If that's possible for another cycle, then it makes the decision a lot easier."