Two singles titles to McBride
Nelson’s Zoe McBride is determined to make someone take notice.
Rowing for the Central Regional Performance Rowing Centre squad, McBride emerged as a double champion after winning both the women’s premier lightweight and premier single sculls titles at the New Zealand rowing championships on Lake Ruataniwha on Saturday.
Having missed selection for last year’s Rio Olympics, the world lightweight champion comfortably took care of business in the premier lightweight final before also easing to the premier sculls crown.
McBride recorded 7min 43.93sec to finish well clear of her Central RPC squad-mate Jackie Kiddle (7min 49.18sec) in the lightweight final ahead of a similarly convincing win over Olivia Loe, also rowing for Central RPC, in the premier final. McBride stopped the clock at 7min 55.03sec, Loe following her home in 7min 59.43sec.
McBride had earlier combined with Kiddle to take bronze in the premier double sculls. McBride was rapt with her premier win and was also presented with her first red coat (for a heavyweight premier title). The lightweight rower went out hard at the start and was never really challenged.
‘‘My plan was to go out as fast I could and hang on. I wasn’t going to let anyone get past,’’ she said. ‘‘I am so happy, it’s what I wanted all summer.’’
She said she was unusually anxious before the start. ‘‘I was super, super nervous going into the race. I think that showed how much I wanted it.’’
McBride is the first lightweight to win the title since Philippa Baker in 1991 and her focus will now return to the lightweight boat, looking towards the Tokyo Olympics.
The Central PRC squad was formed as part of Rowing New Zealand’s high performance programme and includes rowers from Nelson, Marlborough, Wellington, Horowhenua, Palmerston North, Wanganui and Taranaki.
McBride was one of three Nelson club rowers competing under the Central RPC banner, with Olympian Brook Robertson and Sean Ducray also among the medals. Robertson took silver in the men’s premier eight, finishing behind Waikato RPC and ahead of another Central RPC crew.He’d earlier collected bronze in the men’s premier coxless four alongside Phillip Wilson, Joe Wright and Corey McCaffrey, with Waikato RPC finishing ahead of Auckland RPC in a winning time of 6min 1.19sec.
Ducray combined with Jack O’Leary, Corbin Porteous and Tom Cummack to take silver in the men’s under-22 coxless quad sculls in a time of 6min 13.3sec. They finished behind another Central RPC crew, who clocked a winning time of 6min 7.71sec.
Meanwhile, Gabrielle Hannen and Kayla Baker each brought home two medals after combining to take out gold in the women’s under-19 double sculls before combining with Mahalia Shand, Leah van Eeden and cox Evie Strawbridge for bronze in the coxed four.
The pair took out the double sculls title in 7min 43.04sec, just ahead of Auckland’s West End crew of Jasmine Brake and Colombe de Rouvroy in 7min 44.82sec. Nelson’s Jack Castle and Ryan Flintoft took silver in the men’s under-19 double sculls, recording 6min 52.52sec to finish second. The Nelson crew of David Knight, Luke Brady, Joe Bennion and Tristan Gregory-Hunt (Wairau) also won the men’s club coxless quad sculls B final in 6min 32.76sec.