World Rowing Championships ? Semi-Finals Continue

By Melissa Bray

Lightweight events dominated today's semi-finals at the 2005 World Rowing Championships in Gifu, Japan. In conditions of virtually no current and virtually no wind crews raced to be part of Sunday's Finals. Temperatures on the water were measured in the high 20s with 73% humidity. The athletes faired well and only one rower had to be treated for heat exhaustion.

Felipe Leal Atero and Miguel Cerda Silva of Chile

Lightweight Men's Pair (LM2-)

Miguel Cerda and Felipe Leal of Chile come to the World Rowing Championships as winners of the final Rowing World Cup and today they made their way one step closer to winning a medal when they overtook Egypt and Italy to move into first. Cerda comes to Gifu with a 15 year international career behind him and in that time he has become an Olympian as well as a World Champion.

Behind Chile, Italy's Salvatore Amitrano and Catello Amarante spent most of the race tussling with Ahmed Gad and Hossam Azouz of Egypt. Amitrano is in his first season as a pair rower having previously competed in his country's lightweight eight and four. This is Amitrano's tenth World Rowing Championships. In contrast Gad and Azouz are in their first international season and at their first World Rowing Championships.

Coming into the final sprint both Chile and Italy got their rating to 39, with the longer, laid-back stroke of the Egyptians finishing at a 33 stroke rate. Representatives of three continents, Chile, Italy and Egypt, move on to the final.

Bo Helleberg (b) and Thomas Ebert of Denmark in the lightweight pair

Leading from the start in the second semi-final, Denmark's Bo Helleberg and Thomas Ebert only had Alberto Dominguez Lorenzo and Imanol Calvo Ortiz of Spain to truly worry about. Dominguez is in his fourteenth international season and after racing in the lightweight four at the Athens Olympics, Dominguez has teamed up with the younger Calvo. Together they were sitting in second.

But the big surprise was third place. Luka Dordevic and Milos Tomic of Serbia & Montenegro have come out of virtually nowhere. The duo came together in June of this year and finished fourth at the Mediterranean Games, so head coach, Ilic decided to keep them together. This is Dordevic's first international season while Tomic raced last year at the Olympics in the lightweight four.

Denmark remained comfortably in the lead making the 38 stroke rate that they had maintained down the course look relaxed and easy. Meanwhile, Serbia & Montenegro then pushed past Spain to take second. All three crews will advance to the final.

The Germans Daniela Reimer and Marie Louise Draeger in the lightweight women's double

Lightweight Women's Double Scull (LW2x)

There was no doubt about Germany's intentions at the start. Daniela Reimer and Marie-Louise Draeger were the first off the line with only Marguerite Houston and Kirsty Fleming of Australia holding the pace. Draeger has had an uneven season fighting with a lower back problem, but she is obviously good enough to make this priority boat. Reimer won silver last year at the Olympics. Both rowers have their sights set on Beijing.

Australia's new combination brings Houston (World Champion in the lightweight quad) together with former New Zealand rower Fleming. They held a solid 31 stroke rate to sit just behind Germany. Then, from the back of the field, Ireland's Sinead Jennings (2001 World Champion in the lightweight single) and partner Heather Boyle started to push through from the back of the field. Ireland continued to push and in the close of the race the Irish placed second over the lower rating Australians. Germany, Ireland and Australia move on to the final.

The second semi-final was led by Finland's Sanna Sten and Minna Nieminen, but their advantage was minimal as both Poland and the United States held the Finnish pace. Magdalena Kemnitz and Ilona Mokronowska of Poland have a 13 year difference in age and came together last year to race at the Olympics.

Renee Hykel and Julia Nichols of the United States raced together last year in the lightweight quad. They come to Gifu after winning their country's doubles trials. The three leading crews were under very little qualifying threat with Poland performing the best sprint to finish just behind the Finns. The United States take third.

Lightweight Men's Double Scull (LM2x)

Zsolt Hirling and Thomas Varga of Hungary

Zsolt Hirling and Tamas Varga of Hungary look to be the best crew this season having won at both BearingPoint Rowing World Cups that they entered and today they shot out to an early lead in the first semi-final. But it's hard to ignore the rowing pedigree of Italy's Leonardo Pettinari and Stefano Basalini. Pettinari and Basalini, however, don't have the same length of time in the boat together as the Hungarians, having only partnered up earlier this season.

Hungary took the lead with Italy slipping into second followed by Australia in third. The only other boat near to the leader's pace was Robert Sycz and Pawel Randa. Sycz also has an enviable rowing pedigree with two Olympic Champion medals and a whole swag of World Rowing Championship silver medals. But with new partner Randa replacing Sycz's injured partner Tomasz Kucharski, Sycz says his expectations are just to make the final.

Today Sycz met expectations. In the last 400 metres the Poles managed to push past the Australians to qualify from third. Hungary remained in the lead, but only just over a fast finishing Italy. Hungary, Italy and Poland will meet again in Sunday's final.

The Danish racing rule seems to be no matter what you're racing then race your hardest. Denmark's Mads Rasmussen and Rasmus Quist roared out of the start at 50 strokes per minute with only Takahiro Suda and Diasaku Takeda of Japan able to hold on. Finding the initial pace too hot, however, the Japanese began to slip back allowing the more conservative starting Manuel Brehmer and Joerg Lehnigk of Germany to push past.

Then Frederic Dufour and Arnaud Pornin of France started to catch up to Suda and Takeda threatening the Japanese for the final qualifying spot. Coming through the 1,500 metre mark France and Japan were neck and neck. Going across the line the French and Japanese were still neck and neck. The place for first and second came up on the big screen ? Denmark first, Germany second. The mainly Japanese crowd waited.

France had finished in third by 0.05 of a second. Had Japan's big hope, Takeda, been under too much pressure? Japan will now race in the B Final.

The lightweight men's four of France with rowers Pouge, Solforosi, Bette and Tilliet

Lightweight Men's Four (LM4-)

Germany and Ireland already raced each other once this season. Ireland came out on top. Today they met again in the first of two semi-finals and both crews knew that it would be close. But Germany and Ireland also knew that Australia, who raced for the first time internationally in the heats on Tuesday, were a major threat. In that race Australia had pushed Germany to a photo finish.

As expected Germany and Ireland took off at the head of the field but at the half way point all six crews were still very much in the race. The second 1,000 metres started to sort crews out. First Japan slipped back. Then coming into the last 500 metres Russia and Great Britain realised they couldn't hold on. Ireland finished first. A panicked-looking Germany held on to second and Australia sprinted through to third. These crews will meet again in Sunday's Final.

France's lightweight four hold the hopes of their squad. This season they have won both BearingPoint Rowing World Cups that they entered and earlier this week they won their heat. Today they not only raced, but dominated the second semi-final. With just 500 metres rowed, Fabien Tilliet, Jean-Christophe Bette, Jeremy Pouge and Franck Solforosi had a full boat length lead.

This left Italy and Poland to fight for second. For most of the race Italy, stroked by Bruno Mascarenhas, had the edge over Poland. The versatile Mascarenhas has raced internationally in the single and double and also won an Athens Olympic medal in the lightweight four.

France continued to hold the leading edge and in the final sprint Italy and Poland remained in second and third. These three crews move on to the final. A solid effort by South Africa was not quite enough and they will return to be favourites in the B Final.

Men's quadruple scullers from Slovenia: Cop, Spik, Mizerit and Prelog

Men's Quad Scull (M4x)

The intense rivalry between the Czech Republic and Estonia came to the fore in semi-final one and played out in a similar style to the last time they met in the final of the Rowing World Cup in Lucerne. The Czech Republic had the lead at the start with Estonia following closely.

Behind Estonia and the Czech Republic, France, Russia and Belarus were having their own battle. France had demonstrated their potential in the heats early this week and today they showed that their new speed was not a fluke as they hung out with Olympic Champions Russia and Olympic finalists Belarus.

At the head of the field and just like Lucerne, the sprint was going to be close between Estonia and the Czech Republic. Just as they did in Lucerne Estonia managed to get into the lead right at the end. Just like Lucerne Estonia's winning margin was miniscule. Both crews will meet again in the final with France getting the better of their competition to take the third qualifying spot.

In the second semi-final Slovenia shot off the line in their customary style of leading from the start. However Slovenia, rather than looking relaxed like the stern pair Cop and Spik did when racing the double yesterday, the boat looked heavy. Still, the Slovenians had a slight lead over Poland with Germany and Great Britain following closely.

With 500 metres of the race left, Slovenia still had a slight lead but the lower rating Poles were looking more in control. At the line Poland finished first, Slovenia did not look happy about second and Germany had executed a well-paced race to finish in the final qualifying spot.

The results show that not much more than two seconds separates the six finalists' times. This is squaring up to be one of the most exciting races of the World Rowing Championships. The questions remain: Have Cop and Spik extended themselves too much by racing in two events? Would the Czech Republic have been better off setting the quad earlier in the season? Will Estonia's Jueri Jaanson win his first World Champion title in 15 years?

The final will be raced on Sunday, 4 September and can be watched live on www.worldrowing.com by clicking on the live video streaming icon on the home page.

The World Rowing team values feedback.