All the leading British crews moved safely through their opening rounds at Henley Royal Regatta on a day when New Zealand's top boats met mixed fortunes.
Olympic Champions Hamish Bond and Eric Murray continued their peerless run since 2009 in the men's pair by winning their heat of the Silver Goblets Challenge Cup but by the time they went to the start,their fellow 2012 Gold medallist Mahe Drysdale had been knocked out.
Drysdale found the going tough on his competitive return to international racing, suffering defeat to Aleksandr Aleksandrov of Azerbaijan in the Diamond Challenge Cup for men's single scullers.
The New Zealander took a break from training after winning gold in London and tried his hand at triathlons and other enduranceevents. Aleksandrov was fifth in that Olympic final but won with something to spare today.
"I hate losing but I am actually quite pleased with the standard I am at now. This sport is so hard it would be crazy to come back with only a month's training and beat the top guys", said Drysdale.
"Mahe is a hero of mine. He's a great guy with a big heart and I still feel really confused as to how I beat him", said Aleksandrov.
Britain's Olympic bronze medallist, Alan Campbell progressed safely in the same event despite one false start.
Mirka Knapkova, the Olympic women's single scull champion, is also through in the Princess Grace Challenge Cup for female single scullers. In the other half of the draw GB's Vicky Thornley is through to race experienced Emma Twigg of New Zealand. This will be an experience for Thornley who has gone solo this year after racing variously in quadruple sculls and women's eights in the past two or three years.
Four of GB's world cup gold medallists have combined here in a women's quadruple scull - Helen Glover, Polly Swann, Frances Houghton and Vicky Meyer-Laker - and were dominant today. The former duo have moved into the quad from the GB pair and the latter from the GB women's double scull.
Swann said: "Jumping from a pair into a quad is a bit of a shock to the system but I am getting lots of technical tips which are a big help".
In the Visitors' Challenge Cup for men's fours Thames R.C. put in a magnificent effort to defeat Cambridge University, featuring four Blues.
There was a big upset in the Fawley Challenge Cup when the juniors of the strong favourites, Leander Club, caught a crab and broke a blade just after the start and were unable to complete the course. Their opposition from Maidenhead RC now progress to tomorrow's semi-finals.
Today's results have thrown up a potentially fascinating encounter in tomorrow's Double Sculls Challenge Cup with the GB lightweight sculling Chambers brothers, Peter and Richard, facing the GB open-weight double of Bill Lucas and Matt Langridge.
Tomorrow looks set to produce a blistering semi-finalin the Grand Challenge Cup for men's eights in predicted soaring temperatures between the University of Washington and the Polish national eight as well as tantalizing action in the Stewards' Challenge Cup for men's fours in which the GB four take on New Zealand and South Africa meet NZ's other crew in the opposing semi-final. The South African crew contains three of the four rowers who won Olympic lightweight men's gold in London.
In the always hotly-contested Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup for schoolboy eights the semi-final between Hampton and St Edwards Schools should raise the noise level along the banks.