Worlds

Men's Coxed Pair Wins World Championship Gold

July 27, 2008 (previous Worlds reports )

Canada comes away with a gold in the men's coxed pair on the final day of the Senior World Rowing Championships in Linz/Ottensheim, Austria.

The Canadian boat - Gabe Bergen of 100 Mile House, B.C., James Dunaway of Duncan, B.C. and cox Mark Laidlaw of Mississauga, Ont. - won in 7:06.69. France in 7:08.64 and in Australia 7:09.30 followed. Although the defending champions from Poland (David Paczes and Lukasz Kardas) led most of the way down the course, they ended up in fifth place after one of the crew members couldn't finish the race.

"We had a good race in the final, we stayed in our boat and just listened to (coxswain) Mark telling us what was happening, and just followed the race plan the whole way down," said Dunaway, who won the Under-23 Worlds in the men’s eight in 2002. "It felt great to hear the national anthem again."

"They executed the plan with precision," said their coach Allison Dobb. "They have raced well throughout the regatta and were able to make the changes required each time to have their best race."

One of the favourites coming into the lightweight women's single event, two-time 2008 World Cup medalist Lindsay Jennerich of Victoria, finished sixth in 8:01.25. Jennerich had a difficult race: "I dragged a branch wrapped around my fin for 500m," she said. Despite a protest, the results stand.

"She went into the race feeling positive and it looked good through the first 1000 metres," said her coach Laryssa Biesenthal. "Needless to say, she is very disappointed."

The race for first place was a photo finish between Switzerland's Pamela Weisshaupt (7:43.26) and Ireland's Sinead Jennings (7:43.81) - two rowers that Jennerich had beaten earlier this year in World Cup races.

In other racing, Canada's lightweight men's eight was sixth in 5:56.55. The U.S. won the race in 5:50.29, following by Germany (5:51.69) and the Netherlands (5:52.37).

The lightweight eight is Brandon Boyd of Brockville, Ont., Kurtis Boyd of Brockville, Guthrie Hurd of Vancouver, B.C., Paul Amesbury of Ottawa, Ont., Terry McKall of Edmonton, Alta., Tim Myers of North Vancouver, B.C., Nicholas Pratt of Kingston, Ont., Rares Crisan of Kingston and cox Mark Laidlaw of Mississauga, Ont.

The Canadian women's four was fifth in 6:50.99. Belarus won gold in this event in 6:39.89.

The four is Emma Darling of Vancouver, B.C., Sarah Waterfield of Kingston, Ont., Nathalie Maurer of North Vancouver, B.C. and Cristin McCarty of Saskatoon, Sask.

There were eight non-Olympic events rowed today (Canada had four entries) - with no country earning more than one gold.

Full reports and results at www.worldrowing.com

Photo by David Darling. 

--
Jackie Skender - Rowing Canada Aviron
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All Four Canadian Crews Make it to Finals at Worlds

July 25, 2008 (previous reports)

The Canadian men's coxed pair and lightweight women's single both qualified for the finals today at the 2008 World Rowing Championships in Linz/Ottensheim, Austria.

The Canadian coxed pair - Gabe Bergen of 100 Mile House, B.C., James Dunaway of Duncan, B.C. And cox Mark Laidlaw of Mississauga, Ont. - was first in its semi in 7:12.11, followed by Australia (7:14.08) and the Ukraine 7:14.19. These crews will face Italy, France and Poland - top three finishers in the other semi - in the final on Sunday. With very little margin between the times, this promises to be an exciting A final race.

"We had a good race today, we got off the line cleanly and were able to find a strong, consistent rhythm through the middle thousand (of 2000 metres). This set us up to be able to watch the field in the last 500 and have time to react to any challenges," said Dunaway. "It's going to be a tough final on Sunday, and we're hoping to be able to continue to execute our race plan as well as we have done to this point."

Two-time 2008 World Cup gold medalist Lindsay Jennerich of Victoria also moves forward at this regatta. The U.S. (Julie Nichols) was first in this semi in 7:56.01; second was Ireland's Sinead Jennings 7:56.18 - who was a silver medalist at the World Cup in Poland earlier this summer - and Jennerich advancing in 8:01.51. These women will face scullers from Switzerland, Croatia and Spain in the medal race.

All four Canadian crews entered in this regatta will be in the finals on Sunday.

Full reports and results:

www.worldrowing.com

Canada Advances Two More Crews at the Rowing Worlds

July 23, 2008 (day one summary here. )

Two Canadian crews advance after their repechage races today at the 2008 World Rowing Championships in Linz/Ottensheim, Austria.

Canada's lightweight men's eight had a gutsy race in its rep. Poland won the race in 5:53.94, but Canada (5:55.32) overtook Australia (5:57.37) in the final 500 metres (of 2000 metres) to take the next qualifying spot.

"Poland and Australia seemed really focused on getting out fast and responding to what we had planned and did a solid job," said crew member Paul Amesbury, who is looking forward to a fast final this weekend. “Australia, however, did not have the sprint that we had going into the last part of the race to hold onto their slight lead, which was fortunate for us. We are all very focused on correcting our missteps for the A final and seeing what will come of it after the next 2k is put down.”

The lightweight eight is Brandon Boyd of Brockville, Ont., Kurtis Boyd of Brockville, Guthrie Hurd of Vancouver, B.C., Paul Amesbury of Ottawa, Ont., Terry McKall of Edmonton, Alta., Tim Myers of North Vancouver, B.C., Nicholas Pratt of Kingston, Ont., Rares Crisan of Kingston and cox Mark Laidlaw of Mississauga, Ont.

"As they have shown, they have a great finishing kick and were working today for a better start. They got off the line better than in the heat but again struggled to find their rhythm in the second 500," said coach Howie Campbell. "We had not counted the Aussies out, but I still think they surprised the men with suddenly found speed that was not apparent in the reps. Like us they used the one race under their belts to learn and had out a much better race today. ... We now have three days to iron out a few more wrinkles and feel confident we still have our best race in us for Sunday’s A Final."

The Canadian women's four was fourth in its rep in 6:50.49 - advancing to the A final. Denmark won the rep in 6:47.15; with Italy and Russia following. The top four crews advance to the A final. Germany (fifth) and the Ukraine (sixth) head to the B final.

The four is Emma Darling of Vancouver, B.C., Sarah Waterfield of Kingston, Ont., Nathalie Maurer of North Vancouver, B.C. and Cristin McCarty of Saskatoon, Sask.

"Our race today lacked the urgency of a final and race for medals. However, during the race - when making it to the final was in jeopardy - we really pulled together to make up the fastest last 500m of the race," said Maurer. "We have benefited greatly from having two races before the one that really counts; Sunday is where we will put together the race we know we can execute."

The Senior finals are held on Sunday. The next racing action for Canada will be on Friday - with the men's coxed pair and lightweight women's single in the semi finals.

This regatta showcases events that are not in the Olympics, as well as Junior boat-classes.

Full reports and results at:

www.worldrowing.com

Four Canadian Boats Start Racing at World Championships

July 22, 2008

The 2008 World Rowing Championships began today in Linz/Ottensheim, Austria, to showcase rowing boat-classes that will not be raced at the Olympic Games.

In the lightweight women's single, Lindsay Jennerich of Victoria dominated her heat in 7:55.67; Great Britain’s Mathilde Pauls was second in 7:59.07 in this race, with the top two boats moving to the semi. Jennerich has had a successful season so far, winning gold in both the Lucerne and Poznan (Poland) World Cups.

The men's coxed pair - Gabe Bergen of 100 Mile House, B.C., James Dunaway of Duncan, BC and Mark Laidlaw of Mississauga, Ont. - also won today’s heat in 7:04.05; they overtook Italy early on and the Italians ended up second 7:06.08 and the Ukraine third in 7:06.69, with top three moving to the semis.

"The pair rowed well and were happy with their race," said the pair's coach, Allison Dobb.

The women's four was second in its heat in 6:46.36. Belarus won the heat in 6:40.26 to advance, while Canada must row in a repechage in order to move forward.

The four is Emma Darling of Vancouver, B.C., Sarah Waterfield of Kingston, Ont., Nathalie Maurer of North Vancouver, B.C. and Cristin McCarty of Saskatoon, Sask.

"They will have a good opportunity to hit their stride in the repechage tomorrow," said coach Michelle Darvill.

In the lightweight men's eight, Canada was third in its heat in 5:50.42. The U.S. advanced directly to the A final in 5:43.77. The eight will have another chance to advance by finishing top two in the rep tomorrow.

The regatta, which also includes Junior events (no Canadian entries), continues to July 27 (senior finals).

Full reports and results:

www.worldrowing.com