Five U.S. crews will race in heats on Thursday at the first stop of the 2008 Rowing World Cup in Munich, Germany.
Michelle Guerette (Bristol, Conn.), who won the bronze medal in the women?s single sculls at the 2007 World Championships in Munich, returns to Germany with her focus squarely set on qualifying for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team. Guerette, who won the single at USRowing?s National Selection Regatta (NSR) #1 in early April, can lock up her Olympic berth by finishing in the top six in Munich. On Thursday, Guerette will take on scullers from Norway, Italy, Belgium and South Africa in the first of six heats. The top three finishers from each heat will advance to Friday?s quarterfinals.
With a top four finish in Munich, the men?s pair of Bryan Volpenhein (Cincinnati, Ohio) and Jason Read (Ringoes, N.J.) also would have the opportunity to be named to the 2008 Olympic Team. The duo won the pair at NSR # 2 in late April and will now test its speed against international competition. Racing in the second of four heats, Volpenhein and Read will take on crews from the Czech Republic, Poland, Bulgaria, Switzerland and Australia. The winner of each heat advances directly to Saturday?s semifinals, while the remaining crews move on to Friday?s repechages, or second-chance races.
The U.S. has two boats entered in the women?s pair. The USA1 entry of Caroline Lind (Greensboro, N.C.) and Elle Logan (Boothbay Harbor, Maine) won the event at NSR #2 and will take on Denmark and two Chinese crews in the third of three heats on Thursday. The USA2 entry of Susan Francia (Abington, Pa.) and Anna Goodale (Camden, Maine) will race Belarus, France, Germany and the Netherlands in the second heat. Belarus? Natallia Helakh and Yuliya Bichyk are the defending world champions. The top three finishers from each heat advance to Saturday?s semifinals, with the remaining boats going to the repechage.
Coming off their victory at NSR #2, Ellen Tomek (Flint, Mich.) and Megan Kalmoe (St. Croix Falls, Wis.) will race in the fourth and final heat of the women?s double sculls in Munich. The duo will take on crews from Denmark, Great Britain, France and China, with the top two finishers advancing directly to Saturday?s semifinals and the remaining boats moving on to the repechages.
In total, 840 athletes in 371 boats from 54 countries are scheduled to compete in this season?s first world cup regatta. This number includes 32 adaptive boats, which will race for the final qualifying spots for the first-ever rowing competition at the Paralympic Games. The U.S. has already qualified all four adaptive boats for this September?s Paralympics.
The Rowing World Cup series will be televised and streamed live through World Rowing?s partner Web site, www.wcsn.com. In addition, live race tracker and live audio streaming of the race commentary will be available throughout the whole regatta on www.worldrowing.com.
The Rowing World Cup series was launched in 1997 and includes all 14 Olympic boat classes. The overall Rowing World Cup champions are determined after a series of three regattas. This year, the three stages of the series will be held May 8-11 in Munich, May 30-June 1 in Lucerne, Switzerland, and June 20-22 in Poznan, Poland.
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