WEST WINDSOR, N.J. – Crews competing for the last available places on this summer’s world championships team began competition Monday on Mercer Lake in West Windsor, New Jersey at the 2014 Senior II World Championships Trials.
Racing is being contested in four events, including the men’s single sculls, the men’s double sculls, the men’s pair and the lightweight women’s double sculls. In the men’s pair and the lightweight double, only two crews are entered and they will be final only events Wednesday.
The men’s single has nine entries and the men’s double has eight. The first heats of the event were run Monday morning with two crews advancing from each of the three heats to the Tuesday morning semifinals in the men's single.
The winners of the four events will be named to the team that will compete at the 2014 World Rowing Championships, August 24-31 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Advancing to the semifinal from the first three-boat heat in the men’s single was California Rowing Club’s Ryan Shelton (Wrightwood, Calif.) and Vesper Boat Club’s Yohann Rigogne (Besançon, France).
Advancing from the second heat was Tom Peszek (Farmington Hills, Mich.) of the USRowing Training Center-Princeton and Craftsbury Sculling Center's Hugh McAdam (Grantham, N.H.). And moving to the semifinal from the third heat were Community Rowing Inc’s Lucas Wilhelm (Miranda, Calif.) and Dave Ringham (Brighton, Mass.).
Of the six advancing crews, Peszek rowed the fastest time in 7:06.66.
In the men’s double sculls event two crews advanced directly to the Wednesday morning final. From the first heat CRC’s Derek Johnson (Hillsborough, Calif.) and Hans Struzyna (Kirkland, Wash.) gained the final in 6:28.93.
In the second heat, Potomac Boat Club’s Willie Cowles (Farmington, Conn.) and Sam Stitt (McLean, Va.) won in 6:19.07.
Racing will resume Monday afternoon at 6:30 pm with the men’s single repechage.