Pacing pays in hot semifinals

Late pushers sometimes struggled. Success in the past went out the window. In an afternoon of tight do or die racing at the Shunyi Olympic Rowing venue, spectators were kept on the edge of their seats.

WOMEN'S SINGLE SCULLS (W1x)

It was all about coming in the top three positions of these two semifinals. No other position would satisfy. A top three position would mean racing in the Final of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. All other boats would go to the B Final.

Semifinal A/B 1

As expected Mirka Knapkova of the Czech Republic was the first to show in the first semifinal. Knapkova has regularly been in the international medals since finishing fourth at the Athens Olympics and at her second Olympic Games, Knapkova will definitely be gunning for a medal. Going through the 800m mark Michelle Guerette of the United States did a big push. Taking her stroke rate to 34, Guerette had the lead with 900m down. This left Knapkova to handle a charge from China’s favourite, Xiuyun Zhang.

Coming into the final sprint Knapkova had lost the battle with Zhang and slipped back into third. But Knapkova was still in a qualifying position. Was she just content to hold this? Meanwhile Zhang had done a huge push and Guerette was finding it hard to maintain her 34 stroke rate pace. With 150m left to row Zhang gained the lead. The crowd went wild. Guerette had nothing left. Her rating dropped. Knapkova closed the gap.

Zhang, Guerette and Knapkova go on to the final.

Semifinal A/B 2

Rumyana Neykova of Bulgaria nearly pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the regatta. Up against three-time world champion, Ekaterina Karsten of Belarus, the race appeared to be all about racing for second. Here’s what happened. Karsten, at the start, moved into the lead with New Zealand’s Emma Twigg and Neykova following closely. Karsten then settled into a 31 stroke rate pace and did what she often does – do just enough to hold the lead, countering any attacks.

Just before the half way point Neykova attacked. Karsten must have assumed the attack would not be sustainable and did little to counter it. Neykova had the lead with 1100m rowed. Karsten then realised that Neykova wasn’t playing around and meant business. These two scullers have been racing each other ever since their junior days 18 years ago. They know each other’s habits well. Karsten reacted back. The two matched each other stroke for stroke. Whoever was at the finish of the stroke had the lead.

A push by Karsten at the 1400m mark was held off by Neykova. Karsten would have to push again. Taking her stroke rate to 34 Karsten pushed. With just 150m left to row Karsten had a small lead. Meanwhile Poland’s Julia Michalska had pulled out the sprint of her life. Sneaking up on Twigg, Michalska pipped the Kiwi at the line. Karsten, Neykova and Michalska, at her first Olympic Games, earns a spot in the final.

Michelle GUERETTE (USA)
“It’s great to be in the Final; it really only hit me on the pontoon – ‘I’m in the Final!’ I got a bit distracted at 1500m, became rattled and had to sprint. I think it’s because I saw where I was, heard the crowd roar, and got caught off guard. Then I heaved it a bit – it wasn’t smooth. You can’t just hear the crowd, you can feel it – it’s like thunder, it’s thrilling.”

Mirka KNAPKOVA (CZE)
“That race didn’t feel good – the Final will be better. I don’t know what to say about getting to the Final, I’m very happy. I don’t want to think about my preparation now, I’m very tired and think I’m going to sleep.”

Xiuyun ZHANG (CHN)
“Everyone wants to be first in the semifinal but the standard is very high. If I perform exceptionally in the Final I’ll have a chance. My technique is to stay in touch for the first 1500m then sprint – this is down to experience. When I got to 1500m I heard the first shouts of ‘Chinese Team add oil’ and was excited – then at the main grandstand I heard the crowd roar and reckoned I should go for it. The crowd makes a big difference.”

MEN’S SINGLE SCULLS (M1x)

The six scullers in each of these two semifinals needed to be in the top three for advancement to the final. Not accomplishing that would mean a race in the B Final.

Semifinal A/B 1

When you come to these Games with no expectations in an event that you didn’t plan on racing in what do you do? For Peter Hardcastle of Australia the answer was simple. Go out really hard at the start and hold on for dear life. Despite a fast start from Olympic Champion, Olaf Tufte of Norway and Marcel Hacker of Germany, Hardcastle powered his way into the lead. But by the 700m mark, Hardcastle had completely run out of gas. This left the remaining five boats to take over. They all did.

At the 800m mark Belgium’s Tim Maeyens had the lead, but the Swede Lassi Karonen was charging down the outside lane. With 850m rowed Karonen was in front. Going through the middle of the race less than one and a half seconds separated the first five with Karonen still owning the leaders edge.

With Karonen and Maeyens leading the way it looked like being on the shorter end of the sculling height scale was turning into an advantage. The charge for the line was on. With 400m left Maeyens had the lead. Tufte went for broke. Karonen and Maeyens held on. Tufte’s stroke rate hit 39. Karonen was on at 37. Karonen, Tufte and Maeyens go to the final.

Semifinal A/B 2

He may be sporting a bad knee but Great Britain’s Alan Campbell showed no sign of it coming out at the start. Despite a 47 stroke rate by Ondrej Synek of the Czech Republic, Campbell had the lead. As boats settled into their work Campbell and reigning world champion, Mahe Drysdale of New Zealand tracked each other closely at a 31 stroke rate. Then heading into the middle of the race, Synek did a 35 stroke rate push.

By the 1000m mark Synek had the lead as Campbell slipped back. This left, perhaps the top two contenders for Olympic gold, Synek and Drysdale to match each other stroke for stroke. Both rated 32. Both held on. Going through the 1500m mark Drysdale had the lead. Then Drysdale’s stroke rate began to slip. Had he run out of push? Synek took the lead, a smile spreading wider and wider across his face. This is when Campbell decided to charge and out of nowhere, last minute qualifier, Ioannis Christou of Greece was steaming down the outside. Could Drysdale hold on?

The Kiwi managed to lift his stroke rate. Campbell was on 44. It was impossible to tell the finishing order. Synek finished first, Campbell took second, Drysdale held on to third. These are the remaining three boats in the final.

Alan CAMPBELL (GBR)
“I’m ecstatic – over the moon – to be in the Final. The important thing now is recovery. If I hadn’t got through now I would have been honest and not blamed it on my knee injury. The race was brilliant, it got Mahe cut up from both sides! Christou (Ioannis) – what a guy! He only jumped into the single this year, but unfortunately he’s on the other side of things today. I came here with the intention of producing an Olympic performance. We’ve all got a chance in this Final – I think I’ve got an underdog’s chance. That’s a good place to be.”

Lassi KARONEN (SWE)
“It’s my first Olympic Games and it feels great to win my semifinal. I’m much more relaxed about the Final. During the race I found more power, especially in the middle section, and I hope to get some extra power for the Final to enable me to reach my peak. After the Games are over I’ll take every day as it comes, take time off, and relax with my family.”

MEN’S PAIR (M2-)

The two semis in the men’s pair required a top three finish for advancement to the final. All other boats would return for the B Final.

Semifinal A/B 1

Jumping out to the lead by the 250m mark were the late Olympic qualifiers, David Calder and Scott Frandsen of Canada. By the 500m mark Calder and Frandsen had built up a full boat length lead over the rest of the field who, apart from Croatia (now off the pace), remained within half a second of each other.

Calder and Frandsen remained ahead holding a fast 38 stroke rate pace and building up a larger and larger lead. The big question was, could the Canadians sustain this? Or as the commentator announced, a “hot gamble.” Going through the middle of the race Calder and Frandsen had clear water. They looked to be out of striking range.

Nothing changed coming through the 1500m mark. The Czech Republic was in second with New Zealand and South Africa moving with the Czechs. Then crews began to sprint for the line. George Bridgewater and Nathan Twaddle of New Zealand took up their stroke rate to 38. South Africa’s Shaun Keeling and Ramon di Clemente followed suit. The Czech Republic tried to hold on. The Canadians were starting to fade.

At the line Calder and Frandsen’s gamble had paid off. Canada, New Zealand and South Africa are in the final. Keeling and di Clemente barely hold their balance, collapsing in their boat.

Semifinal A/B 2

Is this the return of the form that saw Australia’s Drew Ginn and Duncan Free win the last two World Championships? After a big yawn from Free to help relax him at the start, the Australians took off in the lead and settled into a long, relaxed looking pace. By the half way point the Australians, with defending Olympic Champion, Ginn sitting in bow, had an impressive lead over the rest of the field. Their 34 stroke rate looked comfortable and sustainable.

And sustain it they did, pulling out to an open water lead. Meanwhile the rest of the field was going for broke to come back in the last 500m and make it into a qualifying spot. The United States’ Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss were doing the best job. Germany’s Tom Lehmann and Felix Drahotta were showing a strong finish. Italy gave a big push then but stopped with 80m to go. Serbia only just managed to row to the finish. Australia, the United States and Germany had made it to the final.

Dave CALDER (CAN)
“It was good to see South Africa make it to the Final A. There were points all along the course where we had to improve and prove to ourselves that we belong here after our bad heat. In the boathouse we have a notebook in which we have every detail we should focus on from before we push off the dock until the final gate. Immediately after the accident I called my wife to say we were OK.”

Scott FRANDSEN (CAN)
“When we saw the draw I thought this would be a tough semifinal. But the second semifinal didn’t end as predicted so the moral is ‘Just race’.”

Tom LEHMANN (GER)
“I still can’t realise we’ve qualified for the Final – no one expected us to. We tried, tried, had a long sprint at the end, and it worked. This semifinal has shown we can do it when we want to and that we grow with the races. But the Final will be completely different. After all this is over I plan to go to Spain on holiday with friends.”

 

MEN’S DOUBLE SCULLS (M2x)

Getting in the top three was what it was all about in these two semifinals for advancement to the Final.

Semifinal A/B 1

Boosted by the success of their country’s men’s pair and bolstered by the memory of not medaling at the Athens Olympics, David Crawshay and Scott Brennan of Australia jumped out at the start and into the lead. Hitting a 35 stroke rate pace Crawshay and Brennan looked relaxed and in control. Following closely behind was Slovenia’s Iztok Cop and Luka Spik (2nd at Athens) and newcomers to this event, Rob Waddell and Nathan Cohen of New Zealand.

A push by the Slovenians at the 700m mark gave them the lead over the Australians. Crawshay and Brennan maintained their pace and so did the New Zealanders. Just before the 1500m mark Crawshay and Brennan did a 37 stroke rate push that bought them back the lead. Croatia charged down the outside. Australia, Slovenia and New Zealand were all just holding on. The Australians cross the line first, Slovenia take second and New Zealand hold on to third to go to the Final.

Semifinal A/B 2

The 2006 world champions, Adrien Hardy and Jean-Baptiste Macquet of France have just been handed a huge boost going into Saturday’s Finals. After pushing past a fast starting Belarus, Hardy and Macquet took over at the head of the field. Settling into a 35 stroke rate pace, Hardy and Macquet watched from the front to see if they needed to counter any attacks. The first one came from Stephen Rowbotham and Matthew Wells of Great Britain. France held them off. Then Estonia’s Juri Jaanson and Tonu Endrekson pressed hard. France held them off. Coming into the line Great Britain and Estonia rated 38. France went to 39. France had finished first with the fastest qualifying time to go to the Final. Estonia had taken second with Great Britain qualifying for the Final from third. This puts 42-year-old Jaanson into the Final and possibly the record books.

Matthew WELLS (GBR)
“This was not our best performance – we need to be at 100% and this was probably only 3% to 4% off that but we’ll need everything for the Final. On a positive note, we’ve not yet had our best race in training or racing. So that will come at the Final. In Rowing we all bounce off each other and support each other. For our Final, well, anyone could win.”

Jueri JAANSON (EST)
“That was a good race – difficult, but easier than our heat where I blew up in the last quarter. I can’t compare this to other world events, I only think about our races now.”

MEN’S FOUR (M4-)

The top three boats in these two semifinals would be in the 2008 Beijing Olympics final of rowing. The three bottom crews would get to race again in the B Final.

Semifinal A/B 1

In good old Olympic unpredictability, the leaders at the start of this race was France. But sticking very closely to them was Great Britain, the United States and Australia. This was the order going through the first 500m mark. It was all about to change. A sluggish second 500m put the Australians clear at the back of the field. This gave the United States a confidence burst as they held on to the third qualifying spot.

Then the British, who had been maintaining a 40 stroke rate pace pushed past the French and into the lead. France held on. They did not want to give away the lead easily and confidence remained strong. As the United States began to fade, Australia staged a comeback. Sprinting for the line Great Britain maintained their pace. New Zealand charged at 45. Australia went for the line rating 43. France held on. Great Britain, Australia and France will be in the Beijing Olympic final. New Zealand miss out on the final by just over half a second. The United States miss out by less than a second and the Irish miss out by just over a second.

Semifinal A/B 2

Just like the first semifinal the second semi again performed a race of Olympic unpredictability. At the start the virtually unseeded Belarusians were in the lead. Favoured for a medal, the Netherlands followed back in fourth and the hot Italian crew remained at the back of the field.

Belarus continued to hold on to first with Germany and Slovenia both very much within striking distance. This looked like it was going to be a close race to the end. Surely the Dutch would come back. At the 1300m mark Slovenia had gained the lead. Belarus held on to second. The Dutch slipped further back. This is when the Czech Republic began to move. Taking it up a gear the Czechs charged for the line rating 45. Belarus began to fade. The Slovenians were on a leaders high. At the line Slovenia, the Czech Republic and an extremely happy German crew had made it to the final. Germany had had to substitute two of their crew members due to illness – Richard Schmidt and Marco Neumann had replaced Toni Seifert and Fillip Adamski.

Cameron McKENZIE McHARG (AUS)
“We kinda came through at 1500m, which is different to our usual. We normally like to stamp our authority on the race from the beginning. We held our rhythm and got back into the field, but had to work for it.”

James MARBURG (AUS)
“We’ve got an underdog feeling about coming into this event; in April we didn’t even know if we would be here. Now we feel it’s an opportunity for us to win, not lose. We don’t want to dwell on not making the eight, but we’ll go out and do our best. There’s real solidarity in the crew. No one person will let us down.”

Pete REED (GBR)
“We had a good start but can’t take anything for granted at this stage in the Olympics. There have been big surprises in all events. It’s going to be a huge Final; I’m pleased to be in a boat with three very strong athletes. I’ve got confidence in all of us. This is my first Olympics and it’s a real joy – I’m thriving on the experience. We’ve enjoyed the privilege of being the men’s GBR flagship boat for the past 4 years, but Juergen (Grobler) said to the team before we came out here that there is no longer a ‘top’ boat. We are not battling the rest of the team. In the Final we will race our absolute hearts out.”

Steve WILLIAMS (GBR)
“As expected, we shot off the start, which we had to do because France has a dangerous crew. It was only in the third 500m that we started to ease ahead and that was a good encouragement for us. We’ve come a long way from the heats and will have to step it up again. In every race there is something unexpected – this is a good lesson for us.”

Milan BRUNCVIK Jr (CZE)
“We consider qualifying for the Final as a small miracle. It was a combination of luck, desire to qualify, and will to win. We were last in our heat but we improved in the Repechage where we won, two seconds ahead of the rest. We now try not to go off the start too fast, so that we are able to sprint at the finish. It looks like that’s the right strategy for us. In the last 500m I couldn’t see or hear anything, not even the noise from the tribunes. In the Olympic Games everyone is well-prepared, we all want to be in the Final and race for medals.”

WOMEN’S EIGHT

Repechage

Follows the postponement of eights racing three days ago the women’s eight repechage was raced today. Five boats lined up. The top four would make it to the final. One would miss out. Late Olympic qualifiers, the Netherlands jumped off the line first and established a very small lead over Canada in the outside lane. Coming through the middle of the race the Canadians, coxed by coxing legend Lesley Thompson-Willie, had taken the lead. A large group of Canadian supporters in the grandstand could not contain themselves.

The Canadians continued to lead with the Netherlands slipping back a little. Meanwhile behind the two leading crews a very close battle was going on between Great Britain, Australia and Germany. It was going to have to be decided in the final sprint. Canada held their pace, the Netherlands continued to look confident, Australia sprinted for their life. Great Britain hung in there. Germany began to struggle. Canada, the Netherlands, Great Britain and Australia go to the final on Sunday.

Nienke KINGMA (NED)
“We knew before the race that anyone could qualify. We had a very good race and are happy. Knowing we’re at the Olympic Games helps us to focus. In the last 500m it felt really good. The enthusiastic Dutch crowd here always helps us on. Before the race, we tell each other to have trust, row well and have fun.”

Natasha HOWARD (GBR)
“That race was a bit scrappy; we were dropped off the start, pushed back in the middle, but it all came down to a big scrap at the end. We took the first stroke too slow and need to be a bit calmer next time. It’s the first Olympics for everyone except Sarah (Winckless); her experience is very useful. She told us what to expect in things like the warm-up lake, and this helped us to plan ahead. She’s been a very good influence and told us to enjoy the build-up and how to prepare for the racing. We work well as a team – the rest of us have been together for four years. We’re a very happy boat and it’s not yet sunk in that we are in the Final.”

LESSER FINALS

Crews raced for pride in the lesser finals. In the F Final of the men’s single Kenya’s Matthew Mwange took on Honduras and remained very comfortably in the lead for the entire race. Mwange had high expectations coming into these Olympics. He will now be ranked 31st in the world.

Great Britain and Poland took the water for the C Final of the men’s pair. Great Britain’s Robin Bourne-Taylor and Tom Solesbury shook off the Poles by the half way point and dominated with an open water lead until the finish line. Great Britain will now rank 13th in the world.

It took huge political challenges and will for the Iraqi men’s double to get to these Olympic Games. Haidar Nozad and Hussein Jebur of Iraq received a huge cheer when they walked into the stadium at the opening ceremony. Today they raced the United States in the C Final of the men’s double. Wes Piermarini and Elliot Hovey of the United States are not only at their first Olympic Games, they are at their first international rowing event. Piermarini and Hovey remained ahead of Nozad and Jebur for the entire race. Both boats rowed with pride. The United States now ranks 13th in the world.

Hussein JEBUR (IRQ)
“It’s great to be here and race against big champions. We rowed well and achieved a good time and result. We hold the Iraqi record in M2x – we hope we have beaten it today [they did]. At home we train on the river where we can row over 1800m but the water is not always good and it is not always very safe in Baghdad. I spent two years in Sweden and learned English there. Before today’s race we and the USA crew wished each other ‘Good Luck’. Tomorrow I’m going shopping to buy souvenirs for friends and maybe go to the Great Wall.”