Helped along by a steady tail wind during the finals racing at the 2002 World Rowing Championships in Seville, Spain nine boats set new senior world best times.

The first to start the series was women's single sculler Roumiana Neykova of Bulgaria. Making a post-baby comeback, Neykova rowed an impressive 7:07.71 to beat the previous record of 7:11.68 set by Ekaterina Karsten of Belarus in St. Catharines, Canada in 1999. "Well, I beat the record in Canada, after coming back from having a baby, so this time it was Roumiana’s turn!" said Karsten of the new best time.

Hacker showing his strength
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Marcel Hacker of Germany has been looking strong all season and confirmed his form in the final of the men's single by bettering the previous world best time of 6:36.68 set by Rob Waddell in 1999. Hacker rowed a 6:36.33.

Yet another 1999 record was bettered as Romanians Georgeta Andrunache and Viorica Susan shaved almost three seconds off the previous women's pair record of 6:56.27 set by Emma Robinson and Theresa Luke of Canada. The Romanians clocked 6:53.80.

Great Britain's Steve Redgrave looked on from the shore of the Guadalquivir river as his men's pair record of 6:18.34 was bettered by Matthew Pinsent, Redgrave's pair's partner at the time of the1994 record, and now crew mate James Cracknell. The new world best time set by the Britons is 6:14.27.

Identical twins from New Zealand, Georgina and Caroline Evers-Swindell are the new best time holders in the women's double with a time of 6:38.78. The previous record of 6:41.98 had been set in St. Catharines Canada in 1999 by Kathrin Boron and Jana Thieme of Germany.

Sebastien Thormann, Paul Dienstbach, Philip Stueer and Bernd Heidicker of Germany set a new senior best time of 5:41.35 in the men's four. They smashed the previous record of 5:46.12 which had been set in Lucerne in 1999 by Norway (Undset, Bjoervig, Stoerseth and Simonsen).

Garces and Silva become the first South Americans to set a world best time
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Christian Yantani Garces and Miguel Cerda Silva of Chile become the first South American rowers to join the elite circle of senior world best time holders. They rowed the lightweight men's pair in 6:29.97 bettering the previous record of 6:32.81 set in Aiguebelette, France in 1997.

Houston and Bennet celebrate gold and and a new best time in the LW4x
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The Australian lightweight women's quad that set a new world best time at the World Championships last year in Lucerne saw it beaten by a hair by fellow team mates this year in Seville. The 2002 lightweight quad of Zita Van der Walle, Marguerite Houston, Miranda Bennett and Hannah Every clocked in a mere 13 one-hundreths of a second faster than last year's crew to set a new world best time of 6:29.55.

Elia Luini and Leonardo Pettinari of Italy rowed the lightweight men's double in 6:10.80 to set a new senior world best time. The previous record of 6:14.57 was held by Tomasz Kucharski and Robert Sycz of Poland who won silver on Sunday. Their 6:13.50 was also under their previous record time.