It was a good morning session for team Ireland, with the two Junior crews winning their respective races.
First up was the JW4x of Moya Knowles (Skibbereen RC), Lauren McCarthy Steele (Skibbereen RC), Ayla O’Neill (Kenmare RC) and Kate Reidy (Lee RC) for their Heat. The top three crews qualify straight to the A/B Semi’s, and coming through the 1000m mark, the Irish crew were sitting in that third place hot seat. Pushing it on through the final 1000m, the Junior Women were able to row through South Africa and New Zealand, crossing the line in first place and securing their A/B Semi qualification.
Following on their teammates’ success, Holly Davis and Anna Keating put in a strong showing in the JW2x Repechage. After just missing out on the straight qualification to the A/B Semi yesterday, the Lee Valley and Shannon rowers took the lead from the 500m mark and carried it through to the end, finishing seven seconds ahead of the next crew. They will race again on Saturday morning to try make it into the A Final.
Konan Pazzaia (QUBBC) and Brian Colsh (NUIGBC) secured their place in the A Final after placing third in their A/B Semi. They maintained contact with the Belgian leaders the entire race, staying less than a second behind the German crew in second position. It was top three to qualify, and that’s exactly what the Irish crew delivered.
Shortly after, Ciaran Purdy and Hugh Moore qualified the BLM2x for the A Final. With 500m left, the lightweights pulled into second position. Only three crews could qualify for the A Final, however there were four boats in the mix coming down to the line. The Irish crew kept their bow ahead finishing in second place, and it was the Belgian double that missed out on the A Final by only .23 of a second to the French.
Tomorrow is a quieter day with only two races for Ireland. We will see the Junior double of Ciaran O’Sullivan and Fergus Bryce race the Quarterfinal, and U23 sculler Alison Bergin race the A/B Semi. Times can be found below.
Live results and commentary can be found on the World Rowing Website HERE
Irish Results
- JW2x -> A/B Semi
- JW4x -> A/B Semi
- JM2x -> Q-Final
- BW1x -> A/B Semi
- BM2x -> A Final
- BLM2x -> A Final
- Bm4- -> A Final
Friday Schedule (IST)
- JM2x Quarterfinal – 9:00am
- BW1x A/B Semi – 9:30am