Final stage of Rowing World Cup launched

Heats in the international boat classes opened up the first of three days of racing.

Lightweight Women’s Single Sculls (LW1x) – Heats

Six heats and 24 rowers meant the top three or four finishers would qualify for the quarterfinal, and runners up races also having a chance to qualify depending on the next fastest finishing times of all six races.
Germany’s Marie Louise Draeger already medalled twice this season, winning bronze in Bled and gold in Munich. Draeger stayed ahead in heat one until the finish, but Fabiana Beltrame followed closely in second, keeping the pressure on. Eri Wakai from Japan and Ingrid Fenger from Australia also qualify for the quarterfinal from third and fourth position respectively.

At 33, Austrian Michaela Taupe-Traer raced internationally for the first time in the lightweight single at the World Rowing Junior Championships in 1993. Her many years’ experience showed in heat two as she set the pace for the rest of the field. Kristina Knejp from Sweden held tightly on to second and challenged the leader until the line. Anne Thomsen and Mia Espersen from Denmark  also qualify.

Siobhan McCrohan from Ireland has not shown up at many World Rowing regattas, racing once before in the lightweight single at the 2007 Rowing World Cup in Amsterdam and earlier this season in Bled in the lightweight double. But she demonstrated fine form in heat three, leading the field from the start. Zambia’s Antonia Van Deventer attempted to keep the pace in second but fell behind after the first 1000m. Atsumi Fukumoto of Japan timed her race well, moving up into second after the half-way mark. Qualifying from third is Switzerland’s Eliane Waser who moved comfortably ahead of Zambia in the final quarter of the race. Zambia’s Antonia Van Deventer will also race in the quarterfinal.

Alexandra Tsiavou of Greece is World Rowing’s Athlete of the Month for July. At age 24, she has raced at an Olympic Games and owns a nice collection of World Championship and European Championship medals – Tsiavou dominated heat four. Sheryl Preston from Canada and Helene Olsen from Denmark qualify from second and third respectively.

Great Britain’s Andrea Dennis won heat five with the USA’s Meghan Sarbanis qualifying from second. Poland’s Weronika Deresz attempted to catch up with Marie-Anne Frenken from the Netherlands in the final metres, but finished fourth and last, less than a second behind.

In heat six, Sara Karlsson of Sweden and Erika Bello were going neck and neck, with Karlsson leading at the start and Bello leading in the second and third quarters of the race. In the last 500m, Karlsson managed to once again take the lead and increase the gap until the line. Denmark’s Marie Gottlieb qualifies from third.

Lightweight Men’s Single Sculls (LM1x) – Heats

With numbers of entries similar to those in the lightweight women’s single sculls, 26 scullers meant another six heats. The top four finishers qualify for the quarterfinal.

Marcello Miani of Italy won gold in this event at the 2004 World Rowing Under 23 Regatta. In recent years he has mostly raced in the lightweight double and won medals in the lightweight double at World Championship level. In heat one, Miani lined up in lane four and the Netherlands Jaap Schouten in lane two. Schouten has been a regular medallist in the lightweight single since 2007. Miani and Schouten followed each other down the course, with Schouten keeping the pressure on Miani and narrowing the gap with each stroke. At the line, less than one second separated them. Daniel Lawitzke of Germany and Svein Urban Ringstad of Norway qualify from third and fourth respectively.

Olympic and World silver medallist in the lightweight double, Dmitrios Mougios of Greece, is racing at his second World Cup regatta this season, but in the lightweight single for the first time. Also racing in heat two was world indoor rowing record holder Henrik Stephansen of Denmark. Mougios took the lead from the start and stayed there. Starting at the back of the field in fifth, Stephansen moved up the ranks progressively, finally finishing in second position ahead of Bulgaria’s Zlatko Karaivanov.  At the line, Belgium’s Thijs Obreno qualified from fourth.
In heat three, Japan’s top rower Daisaku Takeda took the lead early on in the race, but was later unable to hold the pace. Jonathan Koch of Germany and overtook Takeda in the second half of the race, with Switzerland’s Frederic Hanselmann also moving up the ranks. At the line, it would be Germany, Switzerland, Japan, and another Japanese rower Kenta Kotani qualifying from fourth.

Peter Galambos of Hungary won gold in this event in Munich. In heat four Galambos proved he is still in fine condition, leading for the entire race. France qualifies from second, Austria from third and Turkey from fourth.

Lukas Babac of Slovakia and Maxime Goisset of France chased each other down the course in heat five, with Goisset keeping a slight advantage until the final sprint. Babac finishes first, Goisset second, with Germany qualifying from third and Turkey from fourth.

Duncan Grant of New Zealand is a three-time World Champion in this event, and he showed it in heat six, leaving no chance to his competitors. Hong Kong’s Sau Wah So finishes in second, Irelands Cathal Moynihan in third and Venezuela’s Jose Guipe Jimenez in fourth. 

Lightweight Men’s Pair (LM2-) – Heats

Fourteen crews raced in three heats with the aim to finish first or second to qualify for the semifinal.
In 2008 and 2009, Adam Freeman-Pask raced in the lightweight single. This year, teaming up with Chris Boddy produced a bronze medal in the lightweight pair in Bled. This is the first year China’s Lei Li and Robby Gerhardt are racing together in this boat class. Germany are also a new crew. Chasing the British down the course, China and Germany could never quite manage to catch up with the leaders. In the final sprint, Germany overtook China to take the second qualifying spot.

Miguel Cerda Silva from Chile is no newcomer, although this season is his first since taking a break in 2007.  At age 40, Cerda Silva has earned more than one medal in this event. Pairing up this year with a rower new to the World Rowing scene, he will be aiming to come back into the medals. The Chileans did lead heat two, but were chased very closely by the Danish crew of Daniel Zielenski and Lasse Dittmann. Both of these crews move on to the semifinal.

Two French crews lined up in heat three, with Top 10 rower, World and Olympic Champion Jean-Christophe Bette teaming up with Fabien Tilliet in boat one. The two boats raced each other down the course and took the only two qualifying spots.

Lightweight Men’s Quadruple Sculls (LM4x) – Heats

Taking the top spot in both of two heats would be necessary for crews to advance directly to the Final A. All others would have to go race the repechage.

France showed determination from the start of heat one to not have to race a repechage later this afternoon. They led from start to finish. Denmark, Germany and Argentina will have a second chance to qualify for the A Final this afternoon.

Italy has a decade-long history of winning of systematically winning gold in this event. Their usual star rower Daniele Gilardoni is no longer in the boat, but the new line-up seems to be working well. They take the top qualifying spot, while Ireland, Germany and Brazil head to the repechage this afternoon.