Single scullers targeted
New Zealand’s top single scullers are likely to be targeted for revenge at the Henley Royal Regatta.
London Olympic gold medal winners Mahe Drysdale and Joseph Sullivan are among the Kiwis competing at the prestigious event which started for the senior competitors overnight (NZ time) in England and sees two boats go headto-head in each race.
Drysdale returned to racing last weekend with a third place in the men’s single scull final at the Holland Beker regatta in Amsterdam and is part of a classy field for the Diamond Challenge Sculls at Henley that includes Sullivan, Great Britain’s Alan Campbell and Slovenia’s Luka Spik.
Campbell claimed bronze behind Drysdale and the Czech Republic’s Ondrej Synek at the 2012 Olympics, while Spik and crewmate Iztok Cop also gained bronze in the double scull at the Games won by the NZ crew of Sullivan and Nathan Cohen.
Sullivan, who was fifth in the B final at last month’s World Cup regatta at Eton Dorney, and his veteran Slovenian rival went head-to-head overnight while Drysdale, who has been placed on the other side of the draw from Campbell, will start his regatta tonight.
He will meet the winner of the opening-round clash between New Zealand’s top lightweight single sculler Duncan Grant – first in Sydney and fourth at Eton Dorney in the two World Cup regattas to date this year – and promising Azerbaijani rower Aleksandar Aleksandrov, who was fifth in the heavyweight single sculls at last year’s Olympics.
One Kiwi crew not expected to be pushed is the men’s pair of Eric Murray and Hamish Bond, who will contest the Silver Goblets and Nickalls’ Challenge Cup. The 2012 Olympic gold medallists continued their winning ways at Eton Dorney last month and shouldn’t have any trouble adding to previous victories at the event in 2009 and 2010.
Women’s single sculler Emma Twigg is expected to fight out the final of the Princess Royal Challenge Cup with the Czech Republic’s Mirka Knapkova.
Twigg was fourth behind gold medal winner Knapkova at last year’s Olympics and has returned in good form this year, winning gold at the second World Cup event and finishing second just behind dual 2012 Olympic medallist Kim Crow at Holland Beker.
The New Zealand men’s double sculls crew of Robbie Manson and Michael Arms will be out to maintain their impressive showing in the Double Sculls Challenge Cup. The new combination have quickly stepped up to the challenge of replacing Sullivan and Cohen in the Olympic gold medal boat, winning the first two World Cup events.
Two Kiwi crews will contest the Stewards’ Challenge Cup – the men’s heavyweight coxless four and the lightweight quad. The other NZ team to compete at the event is the men’s quad.