LINZ, Austria - Finals are set at the 2008 FISA World Rowing Senior and Junior Championships, with ten U.S. junior and senior crews racing for medals Saturday and Sunday. The junior men's eight, junior women's eight, junior women's four, junior men's pair and junior women's single sculls compete tomorrow, while the lightweight men's eight, women's four, lightweight men's quadruple sculls, lightweight women's quadruple sculls and lightweight women's single sculls race Sunday.
To highlight today's competition, Julie Nichols (Livermore, Calif.) won the second semifinal of the lightweight women's single sculls to advance to the final. The six-time national team member edged ahead of Ireland's Sinead Jennings in the final 100 meters to finish just 0.17 seconds ahead with a time of 7:56.01. Jennings crossed in a 7:56.18, with Canada's Lindsay Jennerich third in an 8:01.51. Laura Milani from Italy followed in an 8:03.17, with Denmark and Hungary in fifth and sixth, respectively.
"It was a steady race and I managed to squeeze out the win in the end," said Nichols. "Sinead and I have a history of dueling it out at the finish - both in the single and the double. I am really looking forward to racing in the final."
"She got out of the blocks really well," said coach Michiel Bartman. "Her strongest point is keeping a good, consistent pace and overall, I was pleased with her race today. We'll see what's going to happen on Sunday."
Nichols will meet Ireland and Canada again in the final, in addition to the top three finishers from the first semifinal - Switzerland, Croatia and Spain.
In the junior women's single sculls, Cara Linnenkohl (Redmond, Wash.) finished third to advance to the final. After winning yesterday's repechage by nearly 11 seconds, Linnenkohl held third position the entire length of the course in today's semifinal, clocking an 8:17.01. Norway's Tale Gjoertz won the race in an 8:08.87, with Romania's Mihaela Petrila second in an 8:10.99. The U.S. sculler will race Gjoertz and Petrila in tomorrow's final, along with Germany, Australia and Croatia from the first semifinal.
John Hogan (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Austin Brooks (Costa Mesa, Calif.) finished third in the second semifinal of the junior men's pair to advance to tomorrow's final. Greece won the race in a 6:59.57, with Australia second in a 7:01.37. The U.S. duo rowed even with the Lithuanian pair for the first 1,000 meters, before moving into third place and crossing in a 7:04.93. Lithuania finished fourth in a 7:09.93, followed by Georgia in fifth and Romania in sixth. Hogan and Brooks will have another chance to race Greece and Austria in the final, joined by Germany, Slovenia and France from the first semifinal.
The men's pair with coxswain of Vincent Puma (Bronx, N.Y.), Ben Harrison (Dedham, Mass.) and Ted Farwell (Madison, Wis.) missed a spot in the final by just 0.29 seconds, finishing fourth in the first semifinal. The U.S. was in second place at the 1,500-meter mark, with Ukraine and Australia less than a second behind. The three crews battled it out to the very last stroke for the two qualifying positions, with the U.S. falling short. Australia finished second in a 7:14.08, with Ukraine clocking a 7:14.19 for third. The U.S. crew crossed in a 7:14.48 and will now race in Sunday's B final for places 7-12. Canada won the race in a 7:12.11.
Racing in the second semifinal of the lightweight men's pair, Alex Rothmeier (Edina, Minn.) and John Nichols (Palo Alto, Calif.) finished sixth and will now compete in the B final. Greece won the race in a 6:44.55, with Italy second in a 6:45.39 and Russia in third with a 6:47.41. Nichols finished fifth in the lightweight eight at the 2006 FISA World Championships
Austin Meyer (Cohoes, N.Y.) and Tom Nesel (Duanesburg, N.Y.) placed sixth in the second semifinal of the junior men's double sculls. Australia won in a 6:37.95, followed by Lithuania in a 6:38.88 and Croatia in a 6:39.54. The U.S. duo clocked a 7:04.53 and will now race Ukraine, Norway, Serbia, Denmark and Italy in the B final.
In the junior women's double sculls, Mairi McKellop (Ridgefield, Conn.) and Emily Eiffert (Rochester, N.Y.) crossed sixth to advance to the B final. Austria won in a 7:27.55, with Bulgaria second in a 7:29.01. It was a close race for third place, with Great Britain pulling 0.04 ahead of Czech Republic to finish in 7:29.74. The U.S. crew clocked a 7:53.42 and will compete against Spain, Czech Republic, Australia, France and Denmark in tomorrow's race.
Kynan Reelick (Morris, Conn.) finished third in the first C/D semifinal of the junior men's single sculls. In a dramatic finish with four crews finishing less than a second apart, Reelick crossed just 0.15 seconds behind Spain's Daniel Sigurjoersson Benet in a 7:31.78. Brazil won in a 7:30.83, with Spain crossing second in a 7:31.63. The U.S. sculler will now race Lithuania, Greece, Brazil, Croatia and Spain in the D final for places 19-24.
In the lightweight men's single sculls, Rob Zechmann (Lincoln, Neb.) crossed fifth to advance to the D final. Mexico's Alan Eber Armenta Vega won in a 7:13.13, with Croatia crossing second in a 7:14.49. Zechmann finished with a time of 7:30.49.
The junior men's quadruple sculls crew of Gabriel Fort (Miami Beach, Fla.), Harold Fort (Miami Beach, Fla.), Matthew Sobotka (Sarasota, Fla.) and Ian Stewart (Sarasota, Fla.) finished sixth in the C/D semifinal, clocking a 6:42.29. Russia won the race in a 6:16.17. The U.S. crew will now race in tomorrow's D final against Austria and Bulgaria.
In total, over 900 competitors from 55 nations are competing at this year's championships. The junior men's double sculls event has the largest number of entries will 31, followed by the junior men's single sculls with 30. In senior events, the lightweight men's single sculls has the largest number of entries with 26. The regatta course was built on the Danube River in 1972 and has since played host to a variety of international rowing competitions, including the 1998 FISA World Junior Championships.
For complete race results and schedule, visit www.worldrowing.com. For media information and athlete bios, visit http://www.usrowing.org/news_media/index.aspx.