U.S. crews continue their quest for medals after Friday's racing at the first stop of the 2009 Rowing World Cup May 29-31 in Banyoles, Spain.
Andy Quinn (Honeoye Falls, N.Y.) and Shane Madden (Ambler, Pa.) finished third in the first of two heats in the men's lightweight double sculls to advance directly to Saturday's semifinal. Both members of the lightweight quadruple sculls that finished sixth at the 2008 FISA Senior and Junior World Rowing Championships, the duo was third off the line behind Greece and France. Quinn and Madden surged into second place at the 1,000-meter mark, but the third-place Greeks responded, pushing past both the U.S. and France to regain the lead and win by just 0.02 seconds in a 6:34.77. France crossed second in a 6:34.79, with the U.S. crew in a 6:37.42.
In the men's single sculls, Warren Anderson (Paso Robles, Calif.) won the third repechage to advance to the semifinal. Anderson, who served as an alternate on the 2008 Olympic Team, was in the rear of the pack going into the 500-meter mark, but was able to gain water on Norway's Nils Hoff by the halfway point. The U.S. sculler led a strong sprint through the final stretch to finish nearly five seconds ahead of Russia's Sergey Fedorovtsev in a 6:52.22. In the morning heat, Anderson finished second in a 7:02.19 behind Great Britain's Alan Campbell.
The men's pair tandem of Charlie Cole (New Canaan, Conn.), a 2008 Under 23 World Champion in the men's eight, and David Banks (Potomac, Md.), who rowed in the four at the Olympics in Beijing, advanced to the semifinals after taking second in the repechage. Cole and Banks clocked a 6:41, finishing 1.47 seconds behind Poland. In the first of three morning heats, the duo was third off the line behind Greece and Canada before falling into fourth crossing the 750-meter mark. With just 0.42 seconds separating the first three crews, Canada won in a 6:39.94, followed by a photo-finish with Greece in a 6:40.33 and Serbia in a 6:40.36. Cole and Banks clocked a 6:52.37.
In the lightweight men's single sculls, Jonathan Winter (New Haven, Conn.) finished third in the afternoon repechage to secure his spot in tomorrow's semifinal. A silver medalist in the lightweight men's quadruple sculls at the 2006 FISA World Under 23 Championships, Winter clocked a 7:17.91, behind Great Britain and Italy. In the first of three morning heats, the U.S. sculler held a third-place position through the first 1,000 meters, but slipped back in the third 500 meters. Winter missed qualifying by just 4.58 seconds, clocking a 7:18.14.
The U.S. duo of Glenn Ochal (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Sam Stitt (McLean, Va.), a member of the quadruple sculls that finished fifth at the 2008 Olympic Games, advanced to the semifinal after racing in the afternoon repechage. In the morning heat, Ochal and Stitt finished fifth in a 6:39.29, with just 1.16 seconds separating the first four boats. The U.S. will take on Cuba, France, Croatia and Poland on Saturday in the first of two semifinals.
In the lightweight women's double sculls, Abby Broughton (Tetonia, Idaho) and Michelle Trannel (East Dubuque, Ill.) finished fourth in the first of two heats, missing a qualifying spot. The duo will have a second opportunity to advance to Sunday's final by finishing top two in tomorrow's repechage. Broughton and Trannel, who were part of the lightweight quadruple sculls lineup that finished fifth at the 2006 FISA World Rowing Championships, clocked a 7:17.04 in the heat. Spain's Teresa Mas de Xaxars and Ursula Grobler won the race in a 7:01.69, followed by Great Britain and Canada.
With only six boats entered in the women's single sculls event, Brett Sickler (Los Gatos, Calif.), who served as an alternate on the 2008 Olympic Team and won the single at USRowing's National Selection Regatta (NSR) #1 in late April, will race for lane assignments for Sunday's final. Sickler will face Great Britain's Katherine Grainger, a three-time Olympic silver medalist, including last year's second-place finish in the women's quadruple sculls in Beijing.
Racing continues Saturday at 9:30 a.m. local time. With the exception of the lightweight men's single, U.S. crews that finish in the top four (or top half if there are less than eight entries) will have the opportunity to be nominated to the 2009 Senior National Team that will compete at the 2009 FISA World Rowing Championships August 23-30 in Poznan, Poland.
Nearly 400 athletes from 31 countries will compete in this season's first world cup regatta. Event finals will be video streamed live on Sunday and can be accessed on www.worldrowing.com.
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