Rajanya Shah Petersson is a national team coxswain and a graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy (class of 1992). She learned to cox at Exeter and competed in the NEIRA regatta throughout her time there. After her graduation from Exeter, she attended Brown University and coxed for the men’s team from 1992 to 1996. Following her time at Brown, she was selected to cox the women’s national team eight in 1997 and kept her spot on the team through the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia. Before her Olympic debut, she competed with the national team at The World Rowing Championships in 1997, 1998, and 1999.
Rajanya currently serves as Section Director of Pediatric Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (ENT) at Children’s Hospital of Richmond (CHoR) at VCU. In Febuary 2021, Rajanya Shah Petersson was appointed to the board of The National Rowing Foundation (NRF).
1 “Alumni.” Phillips Exeter Academy, 22 Apr. 1970, www.exeter.edu/alumni. 2 Staff. “Indian American on US Olympic Rowing Team.” Https://Www.mykhel.com, MyKhel, 16 Sept. 2000, www.mykhel.com/more-sports/160900india7-066321.html. 3 “Rajanya Shah.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Nov. 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rajanya_Shah. 4 “Rajanya Shah Petersson.” National Rowing Foundation, 10 Feb. 2021, natrowing.org/board_nominations/rajanya-shah-petersson/. 5 “Rajanya Shah Petersson, MD, MS, FACS.” Find a Provider Profile | Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, www.chrichmond.org/find-a-provider/rajanya-petersson. 6 “Rajanya Shah Petersson.” National Rowing Foundation, 10 Feb. 2021, natrowing.org/board_nominations/rajanya-shah-petersson/.