Robert Norman Waddell is a New Zealand Olympic Gold Medalist and double World Champion Single sculler rower, and America's Cup yachtsman. He is a triple New Zealand Supreme 'Halberg Awards' Sportsperson of the year winner, 1998 to 2000. He holds the third fastest 2000 metre indoor rowing machine time in the world, clocking a time of 5 mins 36.6 secs (5:36.6), which was the previous world record for 19 years before the time was improved by Joshua Dunkley-Smith. He also held the record for 5000m on the rowing machine with a time of 14min 58sec. This made him the first person to go below 15 min for this distance. He holds a black belt in judo. He played rugby union for Waikato. Waddell was Chef de Mission of the 2014 and 2018 New Zealand Commonwealth Games teams, and the 2016 and 2022 Summer Olympics.

The 1998 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 9 to 18 September 1998 in Cologne, Germany. The World Rowing Championships are organized by FISA, the International Rowing Federation.