Manson strikes first

It is Robbie Manson who has the early advantage over double Olympic Games champion Mahe Drysdale in the hotly contested men’s single scull, and by some margin too.

Manson, returning to the sport after an injury-plagued past two months, left Drysdale in his wake at the Christmas rowing regatta at Lake Karapiro on Sunday, easily winning the men’s single scull final in 6min 38.24sec.

Drysdale, who has had an even longer spell on the sidelines, only just returning from a year break following his dramatic victory in Rio, was well off the pace.

He finished more than 14 seconds back in sixth place.

John Storey, world champion in the double sculls, was Manson’s closest competitor on the day, crossing in second in 6min 40.14sec.

His New Zealand team-mate Chris Harris was third in 6min 45.26sec.

Although he is just returning to training, the result is an early setback for Drysdale, who plans to compete for a third consecutive Olympic Games gold medal in Tokyo in 2020.

Although the margin was probably wider than expected, 28-year-old Manson’s win came as no surprise.

He set a new world’s best time for the class of 6min 30.74sec in Poland earlier this year.

A record 2263 rowers are competing at the Christmas regatta.