Allar Raja (born 22 June 1983) is an Estonian rower. He is a member of rowing club "SK Kalev" located in

Pärnu Pärnu () is the fourth largest city in Estonia. Situated in southwest Estonia, Pärnu is located south of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and west of Estonia's second largest city, Tartu. The city sits off the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet ...

Rowing career

2000–2008

Raja competed in the

World Rowing Junior Championships The World Rowing Junior Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). A rower or coxswain shall be classified as a Junior until 31 December of the year in which he reaches the age of ...

in 2000 in the quadruple sculls event (19th) and in 2001 in the double sculls event (13th). In 2004 he competed in the U-23 World Regatta in the single sculls event achieving 8th position. His first appearance in the World Rowing Championships was in 2005 in

Gifu is a city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. During the Sengoku p ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

in the double sculls event with Silver Sonntak. They were second in Final C, achieving 14th position overall. Raja won his first World Championships medal in

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro votes to declare independence from Serbia; The 2006 ...

in Eton,

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

, where ha was a member of the bronze-winning quadruple sculls team with Andrei Jämsä, Tõnu Endrekson and Igor Kuzmin.

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

he competed in the quadruple sculls event with Kuzmin, Latin and Taimsoo earning 8th position. The same team was 5th at the

2007 European Rowing Championships The 2007 European Rowing Championships were held at the Lake Malta in Poznań, Poland, between 21 and 23 September 2007. The European Rowing Championships had previously been held between 1893 and 1973, had become an international regatta in cha ...

held in

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint Joh ...

, Poland. At the 2008 European Rowing Championships in

Marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...

he won a gold medal in the quadruple sculls event with Jüri Jaanson, Tõnu Endrekson and Andrei Jämsä. Allar Raja made his first appearance at the Olympics in

Beijing 2008 The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

competing in the

quadruple sculls A quadruple sculling boat, often simply called a quad and abbreviated 4x, is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four people who propel the boat by sculling with two oars, or "sculls", one in each hand. R ...

event with

Igor Kuzmin Igor Kuzmin (born 23 November 1982) is an Estonian rower. He is a member of rowing club "SK Narva Energia" located in Narva. Junior years Kuzmin was born in Narva. In 2000 Kuzmin competed in the World Rowing Junior Championships in the single ...

Vladimir Latin Vladimir Latin (born 30 May 1985 in Narva) is an Estonian rower. He is a member of rowing club "SK Narva Energia" located in Narva. He finished 9th in the men's quadruple sculls at the 2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), of ...

and

Kaspar Taimsoo Kaspar Taimsoo (born 30 April 1987) is an Estonian rower. He is a four time Olympian and four time European champion. He is a member of Viljandi Rowing Club ( et, Viljandi Sõudeklubi). Rowing career 2004–2008 Taimsoo made his first internati ...

. The men were 4th in their preliminary heat and won the repechage. In the semifinals they finished fourth and did not get to Final A. The final place was 9th as they finished third in Final B.

2009–2012

Raja won his second World Championships bronze medal in

in 2009, where he competed in the double sculls event with Kaspar Taimsoo. Raja and Taimsoo finished 8th at the

2010 World Rowing Championships The 2010 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 31 October to 7 November 2010 on Lake Karapiro near Cambridge, New Zealand. The annual week-long rowing regatta was organised by FISA (the International Rowin ...

held at Lake Karapiro, New Zealand. The same crew finished 7th at the

2011 World Rowing Championships The 2011 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 28 August to 4 September 2011 at Lake Bled in the Slovenian city of Bled. The annual week-long rowing regatta is organized by World Rowing Federation (FISA), ...

. At the 2009 European Championships, held in

Brest, Belarus Brest ( be, Брэст / Берасьце, Bieraście, ; russian: Брест, ; uk, Берестя, Berestia; lt, Brasta; pl, Brześć; yi, בריסק, Brisk), formerly Brest-Litovsk (russian: Брест-Литовск, lit=Lithuanian Br ...

, Raja won his second European title. This time in the double sculls event with Kaspar Taimsoo. The same crew finished second at the 2010 European Championships. For the 2011 European Championships Raja and Taimsoo formed a new quad scull team with Tõnu Endrekson and Andrei Jämsä. The crew finished second after

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

and won the silver medals. The same crew finished won a gold medal at the 2012 European Championships. At the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, th ...

, held in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, Raja also represented Estonia in the

event. This time with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson and

Andrei Jämsä Andrei Jämsä (born 14 February 1982) is an Estonian rower. Due to a back injury he could not compete in 2007. He is a member of rowing club "Pärnu Sõudeklubi" (Pärnu Rowing Club) located in Pärnu. Junior years Jämsä was born in Pärnu. ...

. The crew finished second in their preliminary heat and also in the semifinal, thus earning a place in Final A. In the final they finished just outside the medals in 4th place behind crews from

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = " Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capi ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

, respectively.

2013–2016

In summer of 2013 Raja and Taimsoo formed a new quadruple scull crew with young prospects Sten-Erik Anderson and

Kaur Kuslap Kaur Kuslap (born 26 January 1990) is an Estonian rower. He was born in Viljandi. He started his rowing training in 2002, coached by Ruth Vaar. He has won the Estonian championships 14 times. In 2012 he was a reserve competitor for Estonian row ...

. They also finished 5th at the

2013 World Rowing Championships The 2013 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 25 August to 1 September 2013 at Tangeum Lake, Chungju in South Korea. The annual week-long rowing regatta was organized by FISA (the International Rowing Fe ...

held at Tangeum Lake,

Chungju Chungju (충주시) is a city in North Chungcheong province, South Korea. Uamsan is a mountain located within the outskirts of the city. The city is famous for the annual martial arts festival held in October. Also of note, former UN Secretary ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. The same team repeated their 5th place at the

2014 World Rowing Championships The 2014 World Rowing Championships were the 44th edition of the World Rowing Championships and were held from 24 to 31 August 2014 at Bosbaan, Amsterdam in the Netherlands, the second occasion on which the event had been held in Amsterdam, o ...

held in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

. At the 2013 European Championships, held in

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Penins ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

Raja competed in the double sculls event with Kaspar Taimsoo. The result was a disappointment as the men did not reach Final A and finished in 7th place overall. In the summer of 2015 Raja and Taimsoo reunited with Tõnu Endrekson and Andrei Jämsä in preparation for the

2016 Olympic Games ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro d ...

. The crew went on to win a bronze medal at the

2015 World Rowing Championships The 2015 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 30 August to 6 September 2015 at Lac d'Aiguebelette, Aiguebelette in France. Description The annual week-long rowing regatta was organized by FISA (the ...

held in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. In the spring of 2016 they also won a gold medal at the 2016 European Championships. At the

2016 Summer Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...

, held in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Taimsoo made his third olympic appearance in the

event, with Raja, Endrekson and Jämsä. The crew won their preliminary heat, thus earning a place in Final A. In the final they finished third winning the bronze medals, behind crews from

and

, respectively.

Achievements

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...

Medals: 1 Bronze *

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

Medals: 4 Bronze * European Championship Medals: 4 Gold, 2 Silver, 1 Bronze

Olympic Games

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

– 9th, Quadruple sculls (with

) *

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

– 4th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson,

) *

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

– Bronze , Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Andrei Jämsä) *

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

– 6th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Jüri-Mikk Udam)

World Rowing Championships

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; " Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discover ...

– 14th, Double sculls (with Silver Sonntak) *

– Bronze , Quadruple sculls (with Andrei Jämsä, Tõnu Endrekson, Igor Kuzmin) *

– 8th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Igor Kuzmin, Vladimir Latin) *

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...

– Bronze , Double sculls (Kaspar Taimsoo) *

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

– 8th, Double sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo) *

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrates ...

– 7th, Double sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo) *

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

– 5th, Quadruple sculls (with Allar Raja, Sten-Erik Anderson,

) *

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wa ...

– 5th, Quadruple sculls (with Allar Raja, Sten-Erik Anderson, Kaur Kuslap) *

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

– Bronze , Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Andrei Jämsä) *

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

– Bronze , Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Kaur Kuslap) *

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

– 12th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Kaur Kuslap) * 2022 – 5th, Quadruple sculls (with Mikhail Kushteyn, Tõnu Endrekson, Johann Poolak)

European Rowing Championships

– 5th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Igor Kuzmin, Vladimir Latin) *

– Gold , Quadruple sculls (with Jüri Jaanson, Tõnu Endrekson, Andrei Jämsä) *

– Gold , Double sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo) *

– Silver , Double sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo) *

– Silver , Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Andrei Jämsä) *

– Gold , Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Andrei Jämsä) *

– 7th, Double sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo) *

– 6th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Sten-Erik Anderson, Kaur Kuslap) *

– 8th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Sten-Erik Anderson, Tõnu Endrekson) *

– Gold , Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Andrei Jämsä) *

– 7th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Sten-Erik Anderson, Kaur Kuslap) *

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

– 9th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Sten-Erik Anderson, Kaur Kuslap) *

– 15th, Double sculls (with Kaur Kuslap) *

– 4th, Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Jüri-Mikk Udam) *

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

– Bronze , Quadruple sculls (with Kaspar Taimsoo, Tõnu Endrekson, Jüri-Mikk Udam) * 2022 – 5th, Quadruple sculls (with Mikhail Kushteyn, Tõnu Endrekson, Johann Poolak)

U23 World Rowing Championships

*2004 – 8th, Single sculls

Junior World Rowing Championships

*2000 – 19th, Quadruple sculls *2001 – 13th, Double sculls

Henley Royal Regatta

*2008 – Queen Mother Challenge CupKuzmin"> Kuzmin
, Raja, Vladimir Latin, Latin and Kaspar Taimsoo, Taimsoo celebrating the Queen Mother Challenge Cup victory] ". Henley Royal Regatta. Retrieved on 7 September 2009

Rowing World Cup

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Raja, Allar 1983 births Living people People from Sindi, Estonia Estonian male rowers Olympic rowers of Estonia Rowers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 2020 Summer Olympics World Rowing Championships medalists for Estonia Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic medalists in rowing Olympic bronze medalists for Estonia Recipients of the Order of the White Star, 3rd Class