The U.S. junior men's eight won its heat by almost four seconds to highlight the first day of competition at the 2005 FISA World Junior Rowing Championships at the Beetzsee Regatta Course in Brandenburg, Germany.
The U.S. boat of Jimmy Germano (Pomona, N.J.), Mike Gilson (San Francisco, Calif.), Clayton Sachs (Lincoln, Mass.), Jesse Johnson (Mercer Island, Wash.), Neil Stanga (Arlington, Va.), Neil McPeak (Linwood, N.J.), Henrik Rummel (Vaerloose, Denmark), Michael Rossidis (Garden City, N.Y.) and Derek Johnson (Hillsborough, Calif.) finished with a time of 5:48.12, followed by France with a 5:52.60 and Belarus with a 5:55.24. In other heats, New Zealand clocked the closest time to the Americans with a 5:48.49. By winning its heat, the men's eight advanced to the semifinals.
The junior women's pair of Desiree Burns (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) and Kari Stenbakken (Sammamish, Wash.) also advanced directly to the semifinals after a second-place finish in its heat. The duo finished with a 7:48.21 behind Romania's 7:40.47, the fastest time of the day.
The women's four of Jordan Peek (Jacksonville, Fla.), Adrienne Mecham (Lake Stevens, Wash.), Sara Gribler (Marysville, Wash.) and Lori Gordon (Winchester, Mass.) also moved on to the semifinals after a second-place finish in its heat. The crew jumped off the start line in first place and held that position until the 1,500-meter mark before Belarus pulled ahead for the victory. Belarus finished in 7:05.53 to the U.S. four's 7:06.81.
The U.S. junior women's eight also finished second in its heat and will now race in a repechage, or second-chance race. Germany crossed the line first, clocking a 6:30.62. The U.S. eight of Ariel Frost (Oakland, Calif.), Jennifer Cromwell (Bellevue, Wash.), Alie Fishman (Dallas, Texas), Ellie Logan (Boothbay Harbor, Maine), Lauren Hofmayer (Orinda, Calif.), Erin Knox (Snohomish, Wash.), Elizabeth Demers (Andover, Mass.), Annie Gayman (Seattle, Wash.) and Caitlin McGrath (Westport, Conn.) finished 4.18 seconds behind. In the other heat, Romania recorded the fastest time of the day with a 6:29.01.
Meredith Meehan (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and Katrina Gagnon (Bettendorf, Iowa) finished third in heat two of the junior women's double sculls with a time of 7:55.20. They will move on to the repechages to attempt to earn a spot in the semifinals. Hungary and Spain finished first and second in the heat, respectively.
The junior men's four with coxswain finished fourth in its heat with a time of 6:34.92. The crew of Zach Vlahos (Piedmont, Calif.), Adam Jones (Pomona, N.J.), Lucas Spielfogel (Boca Raton, Fla.), Bradley Wernst (Falls Village, Conn.) and Tyler Montgomery (Baltimore, Md.) sat in second place throughout the first half of the race but couldn't hold on. The crew slipped back to fourth place, finishing in 6:34.92. Italy worked its way from a fourth-place start to win the heat in 6:31.16, the fastest finish of the day's heats. The U.S. will head to the repechages to try for a spot in the finals.
In the junior men's single sculls, Sean Medcalf (Philadelphia, Pa.) finished fourth in the sixth heat of the event with a time of 7:34.26. Medcalf was never able to challenge the first-place finisher from Russia, who led from start to finish. Medcalf now will compete in the repechages for a chance to race in the semifinals.
In the junior men's double sculls, the U.S. crew of John Cerrone (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Justin Ochal (Philadelphia, Pa.) battled Australia for third place. At the finish, Cerrone and Ochal found themselves in fourth place with a time of 6:57.66. They now move to the repechages, hoping for a spot in the semifinals.
Caroline Berson (Falls Church, Va.) came in fifth in her heat of the junior women's single sculls, a position she held throughout the race. She finished with a time of 8:24.54. Her next race will be in the repechages for a chance to race in the semifinals.
In total, 690 athletes from 51 countries are entered in the regatta, which runs through Saturday. Repechages will take place on Thursday. Semifinals for events with more than 12 entries will take place on Friday, while all finals will take place on Saturday.