Warming up in the World Cup heats

A new trial progression system meant that events with 25 or more entries would advance to a quarter-final stage, removing the repechage stage. For events with less than 25 entries the standard system of advancement through repechages remained.

Lightweight Women Single Scull (LW1x) – Heats

Tail wind conditions kept times below eight minutes in all but one of six heats. Twenty-five entries meant that these scullers were racing for a spot in the quarter-finals. China featured prominently with all three entries advancing to the quarter finals. Canada’s Tracy Cameron moves on with the fastest qualifying time clocking 7:51 in heat four. Cameron became a World Champion last year in the quad. This is her first international season going solo and she puts herself in the favoured position. Behind Cameron Austria’s rowing stalwart Michaela Taupe, in her fifteenth year of international racing, finished second and Hua Yu of China took third.

Fabiane Albrecht of Switzerland also had a strong showing by winning heat five over Laura Ralston of Great Britain with Spain’s Maria Bosch Surroca qualifying from third. Teresa Mas De Xaxars added another Spanish boat to the qualifying list by winning heat three with a very consistent race plan that saw her race right to the finish. Behind her Elena Lyakisheva of Russia and Hilde Gudem of Norway also qualify.

There was little pressure on Germany’s Mathilde Pauls of Germany in heat two. Pauls comes to senior rowing after winning the lightweight double at last year’s World Rowing Under-23 Championships. Continuing the procession Daniela Nachazelova of the Czech Republic took second with Tunisia’s Ibtissem Trimech in third.

Heat six saw a tight tussle between Italy’s Laura Milani and Maria Pertl of Denmark. Both qualify with the more solid sprint by Pertl giving her the top spot. Hong Kong’s Ka Man Lee also qualified through third position. Meanwhile an underweight boat for Finland’s Ilona Hiltunen means that she misses on progressing.

But it was heat one that saw some of the closest racing of the day when five boats fought until the line for four spots. China’s number three sculler, Lihong Chen came off best finishing just in front of China number one, Dongxiang Xu. An impressive sprint by Weronika Deresz of Poland pushed her into spot three ahead of Maria Sakellaridou of Greece.

Lightweight Men’s Single Scull (LM1x) – Heats

Three boats fought it out for two spots in the first of four heats, but coming into the final 100 metres Denmark’s very experienced Rasmus Quist let Jan Vetesnik of the Czech Republic and Bine Pislar of Slovenia take the top two spots. This is Vetesnik’s first international race in the single while Pislar has the experience of solid results as an Under-23 single sculler. Quist will return for the repechage. Vetesnik leads the event with the fastest qualifying time.

Current World Champion Vasileios Polymeros of Greece led the way in heat two, but Great Britain’s Mark Hunter kept the champ honest forcing Polymeros to continue a serious sprint through the 1200 metre mark. Hunter’s pressure gave him qualifying spot number two.

A three-way battle went on in heat three. Gerard van der Linden of the Netherlands held the edge with Michael Wieler of Germany and Turkey’s Mete Yeltepe going head to head. Home-course favourite Wieler got the edge and Yeltepe will have to return for the repechage.

A French feud fronted up in heat four between Fabrice Moreau and Frederic Dufour shaking off Italy’s Daniele Gilardoni to take first and second spot – Olympic silver medallist (LM2x), Dufour, first and last year’s bronze medallist at the World Rowing Championships (LM1x), Moreau, second.

Lightweight Men’s Pair (LM2-) – Heats

Two heats and one qualifying spot put the pressure on in the lightweight men’s pair. A number of new names and combinations have fronted up in this event. In heat one Felix Otto and Ole Rueckbrodt of Germany have rowed together in the last three Under-23 international regattas as part of the lightweight four and in that time notched up two golds and a bronze. Now in the pair they move to the final as favourites after rowing to the fastest qualifying time.

Great Britain’s Nick English and Dave Currie overtook Germany to dominate heat two and move directly through to the final. English and Currie move from crewing together in the four to the pair event.