Molly Bruggeman, an Ohio native, competed on the international scene, winning two gold medals at the 2014 World Rowing Under 23 Championships, a silver medal at the 2016 World Rowing Championships, and a gold medal at the 2018 World Rowing Championships. Most recently, she was an alternate on the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team. In 2024, she will compete for the United States in the Paris Olympics.
Molly Bruggeman Earns Spot On The U.S. Olympic Rowing Team
Molly Bruggeman, who finished her studies at the University of Notre Dame in 2014, is one of 21 athletes selected to be part of the United States Rowing Team. She will represent the United States at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. Her inclusion in the team marks the fourth consecutive Olympic event where a rower from the University of Notre Dame will participate with the national team. An image of Molly Bruggeman during her rowing training is shared.
“It’s truly an honor and the result of many years of hard work and support to be named to the 2024 Olympic team.”
Bruggeman said.
Molly Bruggeman’s Supporting Family and Education
Molly Bruggeman was born on June 19, 1992, in Dayton, Ohio. Her parents are Elizabeth and Michael Bruggeman.
She has three brothers and sisters named Gretchen, Patrick, and Matt.
Molly says her parents and siblings are her biggest fans, and she is their biggest fan too. Her mom and dad encouraged her to return to training and competing, which made her very happy. They will be in Paris to watch their daughter compete and hopefully win a medal.
Molly completed her high school education at Chaminade-Julienne High School in 2010. She was born and raised in Dayton before going to the University of Notre Dame. After graduating from Notre Dame in 2015 with a degree in anthropology and pre-health, she got a job as a rowing coach at the University of Minnesota.
When not training for the national team in Princeton, New Jersey, she worked as an assistant coach with the Minnesota Rowing Team. After finishing her studies in 2015, she moved to Princeton, New Jersey, where she continues training today. Molly’s hobbies include drinking coffee, playing sudoku puzzles, dog sitting in her free time, going hiking, and taking naps during her free time.
Beginning Of Rowing for Molly Bruggeman
Molly began rowing in 2007 with the Dayton Boat Club in her hometown of Dayton, Ohio. She quickly felt at home on campus and with the staff and students at the University of Minnesota, where she is called the Gophers.
She began her coaching career in 2015 as a Novice Rowing Coach for the Mercer Rowing Club. During her senior year, she was the team captain for the University of Notre Dame. She became the second multiple first-team All-America honoree in the program’s history, joining Amanda Polk (2006-08), as a CRCA Pocock All-America first-team selection.
In 2012, she placed sixth in the four event at the World Rowing Under 23 Championships. For the past five years, Molly has worked with USRowing, currently as a Level 2 Coaching Course Facilitator, after starting as a Member Services Assistant.
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In her first appearance with the U.S. national team at age 23, Molly won gold in the women’s coxless pair event with partner Emily Huelskamp at the Pan-Am Games in Toronto, finishing in 7:20.98 and beating a boat from Chile by about 12 seconds. She also won the pair at the 2015 Pan American Games Trials and the pair event at the 2015 Pan American Games. Additionally, she claimed gold in the four at the 2017 World Rowing Championships and finished third in the pair at the 2017 Spring Speed Order 1 in the same year. Previously, she delivered a gold-medal performance at the 2018 World Rowing Championships.
Molly Bruggeman’s Professional Career and Representing USA
Molly Bruggeman has been part of nine United States national rowing teams. She has competed worldwide in various boat classes like sculls, fours, pairs, and eights. Molly is a veteran of the USRowing National Team and a three-time All-American. In the 2021-22 season, she joined the University of Minnesota rowing staff as an assistant coach.
Her role was to help show current student-athletes their potential to reach the next level while making a lasting impact. Molly was an alternate for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. Now, she has earned a spot on one of the two boats that will compete for a medal in Paris 2024. In September 2022, she was part of the U.S. women’s eight team that finished fourth at the World Rowing Championships in Racice, Czech Republic.
That same year, she finished fifth in the quadruple sculls with coxswain at the World Rowing Coastal Championships. She won gold in the four event at the 2023 World Rowing Cup II. The following month, she finished fourth in the four at the 2023 World Rowing Championships. Molly has spent the last two seasons with the University of Minnesota rowing team, leading their recruiting efforts as the program improved on the water.
Now, her focus is on the U.S. National Team in Princeton, New Jersey, with the goal of competing and winning a medal at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. Molly, who will compete in the women’s four event, is one of six Olympic veterans on the team. She will train two or three times daily with a highly competitive group of 10 women at the U.S. facility, mainly in small boats and pairs, with trips around the country and internationally to continue preparations.
