Hardy and Macquet new record holders - Rowing World Cup II

The second Rowing World Cup in Poznan, Poland saw a new French double set a World Best time. It saw the domination of Ekaterina Karsten nearly end. It saw the strain of Australia’s women racing more than one event. It saw China continuing to dominate the lightweight double.

Women’s Single Scull (W1x) – A Final

Looking lean, muscular and tanned, six foot tall Ekaterina Karsten of Belarus won her first Olympic medal 14 years ago. Today, the 34 year old mother of one took one step closer to her fifth Olympic Games. One wonders if Karsten, who has been able to so completely dominate the single since 2005, has forgotten how to sprint. But today Mirka Knapkova of the Czech Republic gave Karsten the best run for her money that the Belarusian has seen for a while.

Knapkova got off the line first with Karsten moving with her. With 1 ½ minutes of racing gone, Karsten had pushed through to the lead. But Knapkova fought back gaining the lead once again. Karsten then pushed through settling into her favourite 29 stroke rate pace. In one of Karsten’s closest races Knapkova remained right there. At the line less than two seconds separated them. Karsten, finally, had been forced to sprint. Belarus retains the World Cup leaders bib, Knapkova earns yet another silver and Sophie Balmary of France could not hold the leaders pace and finished a solid third ahead of Sweden.

Men’s Single Scull (M1x) – A Final

The punters couldn’t pick it. Would 23 year old Munich winner Alan Campbell of Great Britain have the goods? Would Germany’s Marcel Hacker be able to take his race up a notch? Would World Champion Mahe Drysdale show that he’ll continue to foot it with the Europeans? And would Olympic Champion Olaft Tufte of Norway find a quicker start?

Campbell got off the line first and opened up a hefty two second lead over a surprised Drysdale, with Hacker having a disappointing opening, back in fourth. Campbell continued to power away and still had a good lead with the half way point passing by. Then the New Zealander began to move. Stroking a solid 33 rate, Drysdale was not going to let Campbell keep the lead. Meanwhile Hacker had a huge deficit to make up, fighting to overtake Sweden and Tufte. As Drysdale’s 33 stroke rate propelled him into the lead, the big screen at the finish line showed the power of his torso. Last year Drysdale sustained a debilitating accident when he was hit by a water-skier while training. Since then he has worked on his core strength and come out the better for it.

In the final sprint Campbell attacked, rating 38, Hacker continued to gain spots, rating 39, but Drysdale held them off. Despite the cross-tail conditions, Drysdale came within three seconds of the World Best Time. Campbell held on to second, a disappointed Hacker comes through in third.

Women’s Pair (W2-) – Final

The power of Australia’s sweep team had half of this final made up of the green and gold crews. Australia’s eight broken down into pairs have been making waves throughout this regatta and today they took up one complete side of the event. But despite this Oz dominance, Germany showed that they can also foot it in the sweep category. Nicole Zimmermann with Elke Hipler took up one lane and Maren Derlien and Christina Gerking took up another. All four of these athletes come from the Munich winning German eight with Zimmermann and Hipler both 2004 Olympians. The Netherlands made up the final lane.

Racing began with Zimmermann and Hipler finding the lead and opening up a one length margin. At the half-way point this margin had increased over two following Australian crews. But then Derlien and Gerking pulled out an attack. The attack propelled them past Australia’s second and third crew as they went after their fellow crew-mates. The sprint to the line had both German crews matching each other at a 37 stroke rate with a surprise charge by Australia’s number one boat of Emily Martin and Sarah Heard. The top two medals go to Germany, Australia picks up the third, then leaves to prepare for the eight later today.

Men’s Pair (M2-) – Final

It is nothing short of a treat to watch the Australian pair. Stroked by two metres tall Duncan Free with Drew Ginn (196cm) sitting in bow, the duo’s long fluid strokes made the rest of the field look short and choppy. The experienced duo have spent their long rowing careers quite separate. Free was in the quad for the last three Olympics, while Ginn has Olympic golds from the pair and four. Today they met the reigning World Champions, New Zealand for the first time.

But at the start of the race it was Germany 2 that held the advantage. This did not last long. Ginn and Free soon pushed ahead with, quite unexpectedly, New Zealand at the back of the field. New Zealand had come through as winners of the semi-final but were not on the pace. Meanwhile Goran Jagar and Nikola Stojic of Serbia & Montenegro were showing that their win at Munich last month was not a fluke. A strong middle 1000 propelled them into second ahead of Jochen Urban and Adreas Penkner of Germany’s Munich winning eight.

The sprint was on. Australia sat calmly on a 35. Goran and Stojic went from 38 to 40. Germany got to 39. At the line Ginn and Free had gold, Goran and Stojic silver, and Urban and Penkner bronze.

Women’s Double (W2x) – Final

They hold the World Best Time. They are the current World and Olympic Champions. They come from New Zealand’s North Island east coast and are best known in their home country for advertising beef and lamb. Caroline and Georgina Evers-Swindell arrived in Europe less than a week ago in Caroline’s 11th year of spending every New Zealand winter outside of her country. It is Georgina’s 10th year doing the same.

Today the twins met Munich winners Annie Vernon and Anna Bebington of Great Britain for the first time. But it was China that pulled out the first attack. Dispelling that the New Zealanders then had to deal with Catriona Sens and Sonia Mills (Australia I) and Dana Faletic and Sally Kehoe (Australia II), who have also been racing this regatta in the quad. But the two Australian boats seemed unconcerned with the New Zealanders and instead raced their own race against each other. Faletic and Kehoe were in front first, then Sens and Mills got through to second. While the Evers-Swindells remained in front, the Australians fought to a photo finish. Faletic and Kehoe earn silver and Sens and Mills take bronze.

Men’s Double (M2x) – A Final

Six crews, 12 rowers, handed us the race of the day. Such a race that the winner scored a new World Best Time, the current World Champions fell and the Munich winners didn’t even make it to the podium. Opening up the proceedings, 2005 FISA Team of the Year, Iztok Cop and Luka Spik of Slovenia and current World Champions, led the way. But there was barely a whisker between them and the rest of the field and in no time at all that had lost the front spot to Jean-Baptiste Macquet and Adrien Hardy of France. The French lead didn’t last long. Slovenia reacted swiftly and took back the lead.

There was only 500 metres left to row and on top of the close battle at the head of the field, a second, and even closer battle, was going on for the bronze medal spot. A miniscule half a second separated Munich winners Germany, 2001 World Champions Hungary and Matthew Wells and Stephen Rowbotham of last year’s Great Britain quad. Everyone sprinted. France’s rating went from 36 up to 40 up to 43. In the excitement Cop caught a crab 20 metres from the finish, recovered quickly, but France had scored gold. Slovenia pick up silver and Great Britain earn bronze.

A new World Best Time of 6:03 put Hardy and Macquet into the record books, achieving a new world best time which had previously been set by Cop and Spik seven years ago. All this and a remarkable recovery from health problems earlier in the week by Hardy. The race of the day.

Men’s Four (M4-) – A Final

Great Britain’s flagship crew continued on their winning ways with Alex Partridge, Steve Williams, Peter Reed and stroke Andy Hodge showing that a small tweaking of the line up won’t change their strategy – get out in the lead and remain there until the final buzzer. At Munich the British were given a good run for their money when both the Netherlands and Germany put the squeeze on them. The Dutch aren’t racing here and the newly mixed German four didn’t make the final. This left it up to New Zealand who, like Great Britain, had won their heat two days ago.

But the big surprise was to come from Slovenia. Rok Kolander, Tomaz and Miha Pirih and Matej Prelog have reshuffled within their squad and this new line up, two of which raced in the Olympic four in 2000, looked great in the semi-finals. Sitting behind Great Britain in second Slovenia held the pace with the Czech Republic in third. The New Zealanders sat outside of the medals and off the leaders pace.

Great Britain remain World Cup leaders after crossing the line in first, a very happy Slovenia finally get onto the medal podium with silver and the new New Zealand line up pull out an awesome sprint finish to earn bronze for their country.