Unveiling Olympic Hopefuls ? Finals at the World Cup

By Melissa Bray

Umbrellas went up, umbrellas came down. Crews got wet, crews dried out. Even hailstones fell, but the water remained flat for the finals of the Olympic events in Lucerne, Switzerland at the last BearingPoint Rowing World Cup for 2004.

The tension could almost be heard in the silence of the start line as crews faced each other in what could well be the last time before Athens. Although illness kept at least 10 boats, including three of Germany’s top boats, out of the finals, some races read ? and were raced ? like an Olympic preview.

Denmark, meanwhile, struggled in every event they entered while the Czech Republic showed the strength of their men’s sculling programme by winning medals in three out of the four men’s sculling events. 

Women’s Single Sculls

Irina Fedotova of Russia wanted to see what she could do.  The 1998 World Champion shot off to an early lead with two-time Olympic gold medallist, Ekaterina Karsten of Belarus remaining by her side. Fedotova is aiming for her first Olympics in the single having raced 1996 and 2000 in the quad and at the half way point she still had a slight lead. But, as the rain began to fall, this was all about to change.

Attacks came from all sides as the best in the world started to wind. First two-time World Champion Rumyana Neykova of Bulgaria attacked. Then 2001 World Champion, Germany’s Kathrin Rutschow-Stomporowski upped the pressure while Mirka Knapkova of the Czech Republic hung on. This left Fedotova to slip back to fifth.

As the race bore down on the final 500 metres, Karsten was at the head of the field with a canvas over Rutschow-Stomporowski and the sprint was on. Karsten knows that Rutschow-Stomporowski has a strong finish. Rutschow-Stomporowski knows that Karsten never gives up and together they charged for the line, Karsten taking her rating to an impressive 40 strokes per minute with Rutschow-Stomporowski moving up to a 37. At the line Germany had it. Meanwhile the battle for bronze was fierce. Neykova was coming back from a slow third 500 and trying to overtake Knapkova who had remained consistently in third throughout the race. Neykova left it too late and was unable to make up the difference. Knapkova moves into the realm of top three in the world. 

Tufte back on top
© Dominik Keller

Men’s Single Sculls

It was anyone’s guess who would be the gold medal winner at the end of this race. World Champion Olaf Tufte of Norway had already been beaten twice this season, so had 2002 World Champion Marcel Hacker of Germany while Vaclav Chalupa of the Czech Republic had been beaten in Poznan.

But it was Santiago Fernandez of Argentina that decided to surprise. Fernandez was right with Hacker coming out of the start and at the 650-metre mark the Argentinean, rating 35 strokes per minute, had a slight lead over the German. Chalupa, in the lane next to Hacker, was also holding the leaders pace and as the race came through the 1000 meter point, there was nothing between Fernandez, Hacker and Chalupa.

However there was still 1000 metres to row and the leaders were being challenged by a lung-splitting piece at the 1200 by Tufte. Had Tufte heard something from the shore? Had the Norweigen decided he was fed up with not coming first so far this season? Was he reminding himself of the thousands of kilometres he had clocked on the erg over the winter? The piece propelled Tufte forward from a three second deficit and into the lead by the 1500 and it was now all on for the final sprint. Three boats were clearly in it ? Tufte, Hacker and Chalupa. Hacker and Tufte took their rating up to a 37 with Chalupa sticking with them at a 36. At the line Tufte had it with Hacker in second and Chalupa in third. The crowd could breathe again.

Women’s Pair

Great Britain, Canada, Germany and Romania have all won World Cup medals this season. Today these four crews all assembled for the first time in 2004 with the added element of number two in the world, Yuliya Bichyk and Natallia Helakh of Belarus joining them for the first time since last year.

Coming through the heats everyone knew that Belarus was the crew to watch and it was Bichyk and Helakh that took off at the start to gain a slight advantage over Georgeta Andrunache and Viorica Susanu of Romania. However, this lead was not to last long. Romania were the World Champions in 2001 and 2002 and despite getting to the finals through the repechage, today they were making no mistakes.

By the half way point Andrunache and Susanu had the lead over the Belarusians, if only just, and the Romanians continued to move. Tussling with each other the two leading boats moved further and further away from the rest of the field. World Champions, Cath Bishop and Katherine Grainger of Great Britain could all but hold onto third in their own private battle with Canada. As the end came into view Romania and Belarus looked content not to hurry, leaving Great Britain and Canada to show us what high rating is all about. Bishop and Grainger won the battle finishing third and denying Canada of a medal as the rain in Lucerne finally stopped.

Romania and Belarus finished in first and second respectively. Andrunache at the finish showed her confidence. ?We were expecting to win. It was hard but not impossible.? Helakh was less confident. ?We hoped for a gold medal, but didn’t believe in it,? said Helakh after the race. Andrunache now looks in a fine position to add another Olympic gold to her collection of two.

Men’s Pair

Canada’s David Calder and Kyle Hamilton have been demonstrating their blitzing starts throughout this regatta and they displayed it again in today’s final. With only a minute and a half gone in the race Calder and Hamilton had more than a second on the rest of the field. However, number two in the world, Croatia’s Niksa and Sinisa Skelin, from one lane over, were sticking with them. The two boats remained overlapping with Italy’s Giuseppe De Vita and Dario Lari still very much in touch.

The order, although close, remained the same and as boats came in to the final sprint three crews all had a chance of winning. Italy and Croatia both took their rating up a notch with Canada struggling to match the rating. In a photo finish Italy slipped through to take first while Croatia caught Canada on the line to win silver. Canada easily retained third with the remainder of the field way, way, way back.

These boats will meet again at Athens joined by World Champions Drew Ginn and James Tomkins from Australia and current third in the world Don Cech and Ramon Di Clemente of South Africa. 

Women’s Double Sculls

In 2000 Georgina and Caroline Evers-Swindell of New Zealand came to Lucerne to try and qualify for the Sydney Olympics. They didn’t. They vowed never to repeat that experience. In 2001 they finished in second at the World Champs and in the proceeding two years never lost a race. Today they dominated once again meeting Kathrin Boron ? in her first international race this year ? and Kirsten El Qalqili of Germany for the first time this season. Repeating the plan that has been New Zealand’s trademark over the last two years, 25-year-old twins, Caroline and Georgina Evers-Swindell led from start to finish.

Behind them Boron and El Qalqili held on to second over Great Britain. But it was Marita Scholz and Christiane Huth of Germany’s number two crew that were putting on the heat. From the back for the field Huth and Scholz had moved past the United States and were going after Great Britain. They managed it in the final sprint securing a bronze medal for their efforts. On the medals podium New Zealand stood in the middle surrounded by two German crews.

Men’s Double Sculls

It was a Munich repeat ? nearly. Estonia did their fast start but then could not retain the pace, slipping to the back of the field with Hungary. This left it up to Italy’s Alessio Sartori and Rossano Galtarossa and Iztok Cop and Luka Spik of Slovenia to duke it out. But Italy and Slovenia were not alone. From the outside lane, Milan Dolecek and Ondrej Synek of the Czech Republic had snuck up into second with half the race completed and were holding onto that spot just behind Sartori and Galtarossa and just ahead of Spik and Cop.

Coming into the final sprint Dolecek and Synek still retained the silver medal position. However, Olympic Champions, Spik and Cop were turning on an awesome sprint. As the line came into view, the Slovenians moved past the Czech’s and went after Italy. They left it a bit late. Italy finishes first, Slovenia wins silver and the Czech Republic stayed ahead of France win their first World Cup medal this season.

Read signals success for the US in the four
© Dominik Keller

Men’s Four

The United States head men’s coach Mike Teti must have had his cell phone ringing hot. Teti, back at the US Princeton Training Centre, had not been there to witness it. What was meant to be a battle between the Canadian World Champions and Great Britain’s star crew went completely wrong when the top two crews were so obsessed with each other that they missed seeing the United States doing their own thing in the outside lane.

Bryan Volpenhein, Beau Hoopman, Dan Berry and Jason Read, rowing for the United States, had not been doing anything impressive all week having only just sneaked into the final by coming third in yesterday’s semi-final. After the start they were sitting back in fourth with Canada in the lead and Great Britain, from one lane over, right on their case in second. The Canadian-Great Britain battle continued on at the head of the field and with 500 metres to go nothing had changed.

Meanwhile, way over in lane one, US stroke, Volpenhein, going through the 1000 metre mark, decided their cadence was too low. Taking the rating up the US began to sprint. This sprint brought them overlapping with the top two crews. Still Canada and Great Britain did not notice. The United States continued to charge for the line overtaking both leading crews to win gold.

?It was unbelievable,? said Volpenhein during the medal ceremony. ?We haven’t been having great rows since we got here. I called it up at the 1000 and it’s like the race started all over.? Great Britain’s stroke, Matthew Pinsent, said it was an incredible race. ?We were at each other (Canada) all of the way and we didn’t spot what the Americans were doing.?  

Lightweight Women’s Double Sculls

Germany’s Daniela Reimer and Claudia Blasberg have won both World Cups this year and, aiming for a hat trick, they led the rest of the field out of the starting blocks, staying just ahead of Fiona Milne and Mara Jones of Canada. Reimer and Blasberg remained in front going through the half way point with Milne and Jones still very much in touch. But an uninspiring third 500 by the Germans allowed Canada to take the lead with Constanta Burcica and Angela Alupei of Romania following the Canadians.

Canada was now in the lead and working to stay ahead of Burcica and Alupei. As the leading crews approached the final sprint Germany, in third, tried to come back on the leaders, but Canada and Romania had just enough to remain in first and second respectively. Germany finishes the World Cup series with three medals ? one of them bronze. 

Luini & Pettinari sneak through to gold
© Getty Images/Gary Prior

Lightweight Men’s Double Sculls

Coming up to today’s final a mixture of results had unfolded and it was anyone’s guess who would be in the gold medal spot at the end of this race. Hungary’s Zsolt Hirling and Tamas Varga had lost to Italy in the semi-final by only a few strokes and now they had the knowledge that they could hold it with the fastest in the world. Coming out of the start Hirling and Varga had the lead over Pascal Touron and Frederic Dufour of France. It remained a French-Hungarian battle through the middle of the race with neither crew allowing the other to get away. As the final 500 metres came into sight less than half a second only separated these two crews with France rating 39 strokes per minute.

But Elia Luini and Leonardo Pettinari of Italy were finally coming into their own. As the last 500 metres arrived, Luini and Pettinari went after the French. Three boats all still had a gold medal chance as the finish line came into view. There was nothing in it. France was rating 43 and Italy was at a 41 stroke pace. After the line all three crews sat there. No one knew who had won. A photo finish was needed. Italy had won the gold with France in second and Hungary got their first medal for 2004 by finishing in third.

Special mention must be made of the United States who came back from a huge nine second deficit to come within whispering distance of a medal. 

Lightweight Men’s Four

Water was splashing everywhere and the boat was bouncing along but they were in the lead. Four aggressive Italian lightweights had half a boat length advantage over Ireland and Australia and were making the advantage wider. By the middle of the race the 2003 bronze medal Italians had nearly a boat length over Australia in second.

Behind them Canada had pulled out a piece just after the 1000 and were moving from the back of the field through first the Netherlands, then Spain, followed by Ireland and finally Australia ? going from last to second in just 500 metres. The order remained unchanged in the final sprint with Italy, rating 44 strokes per minute, comfortably in first, Canada finished second and Australia held on to third.

Gehman happy despite rain
© Dominik Keller

Women’s Quadruple Sculls

Just as the six quads moved into the starting blocks the rain again began to fall. This did not seem to deter Russia and Great Britain who shot out of the start together, Russia holding a slight advantage. Great Britain then took charge as Russia started to fade. Summer in Switzerland disappeared as driving rain turned into hail for the women on the water. But Great Britain continued to handle the conditions with Germany overtaking Russia to move into second.

As the final sprint came into view Great Britain and Germany raced for the line with Germany just inching ahead. Inches were not enough, in the final five strokes Great Britain regained the lead and go to the medals podium as the winners. Germany finished a bow ball back in second and an awesome sprint by the United States brought them from last into bronze medal position. 

Men’s Quadruple Sculls

As the rain continued to bucket down crews sitting in the start used anything in their boat to try and bail out the ever-increasing amount of water ? tee-shirts, drink bottles, whatever, all became useful. They also tried to keep their muscles warm in preparation for pushing their bodies into an anaerobic state for the opening sprint. Russia managed this the best leaving the first 500 behind in first place. But apparently it’s pretty been cold lately in Canberra, Australia where the nation’s top quad trains and today Australia did not let the weather affect them. The Aussies moved into the lead and never looked back.

This left Poland and the Czech Republic in chasing mode and as Australia moved further out in front, Poland got their boat into second and held on. Overtaking Russia the Czech’s moved into the final medal spot and added to an incredible day of sculling for the Czech Republic.

Women’s Eight

Yesterday’s preliminary final put the United States and the Netherlands in the top two spots and they lined up again today minus Germany who withdrew due to stoke Lenka Wech, becoming ill. Under the command of coxswain, Mary Whipple, the United States took the lead at the start and had nearly half a boat length lead Romania as the rain stopped.

Romania held on to second but could not counter a piece by the Netherlands going through the third 500. The Netherlands qualified for Athens earlier this week with a line-up that has only been together about three weeks. The new line-up includes their country’s quad rowing in the bow four spots. Romania was unable to come back at the Dutch and with the United States still in first, the Netherlands won their first World Cup medal for the season with Romania taking bronze.  

Men’s Eight

It is unusual to see two-time World Champions Canada in second, but that is exactly where they were when Germany decided to take a different approach to this race and shot out in front at the start. Showing that it was not a lucky fluke, Germany retained this spot going through the second 500 and still had the lead, although slight, at the half way point.

But Canada was right there and, using superior power, they pulled ahead as the final 500 metres came into view, relegating Germany to second. Meanwhile, second in the world, the United States had worked their way past Egypt and moved ahead of Italy to take third. Moving into the final sprint, Canada had the lead with Germany in touch as Italy laid it all on the line. In a photo finish the top two places remained unchanged with Italy snatching bronze from the US in the final metres of the race. 

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