Sunday 27 May
RA media release:
Australians line up for medals in Lucerne
Saturday 26 May
The Australian Rowing Team has qualified for seven A Finals at World Cup 2 after another highly competitive day of racing on the Rotsee in Lucerne, Switzerland.
The second day of World Cup 2 featured a number of semi finals and repechages as crews battled for finals positions and the Australian women’s single scull, men’s double scull and men’s eight all won their races.
The men’s eight faced a tricky repechage that included current world championship silver medallists Great Britain and World Cup 1 bronze medallists The Netherlands, but the Toby Lister (NSW) coxed boat started well to lead through 500m.
The crew, which also features Francis Hegerty (NSW), Matt Ryan (NSW), Nicholas Purnell (NSW), Tom Swann (VIC), Bryn Coudraye (SA), Cameron McKenzie-McHarg (VIC), Josh Booth (VIC) and Sam Loch (NSW), traded the lead with Great Britain down the course but after retaking the lead at the 1500m mark, held on for an excellent victory.
Australia crossed the line in 5:23.23, just 0.33 of a second clear of Great Britain, while Poland and The Netherlands also progressed through to the final.
Kim Crow (VIC) continued her winning ways in the absence of double scull partner Brooke Pratley (NSW), completing a start-to-finish victory in semi-final 2 of the women’s single scull.
Crow, who has now won all of her races across the Final Olympic Qualification Regatta and World Cup 2, once again established an early lead before recording a time of 7:23.44 to qualify for the final alongside the scullers from Azerbaijan and Russia.
Olympic champions David Crawshay (VIC) and Scott Brennan (TAS) earlier in the day had been the first Australian crew to prevail as they held off strong challenges from Germany and Great Britain in the men’s double scull.
The pair, who were undefeated at the Olympic regatta four years ago in Beijing, were second behind Great Britain with just 500m remaining before overtaking their Commonwealth rivals and securing a half boat length win in a time of 6:10.13.
The women’s pair, women’s eight and women’s quad scull also progressed to A Finals after each finished second in their respective semi-finals and repechages.
Sarah Tait (VIC) and Kate Hornsey (TAS) faced current world champions New Zealand in their semi-final and crossed the line just over two seconds behind the Kiwi pair.
Tait and Hornsey found themselves in third place behind New Zealand and Argentina at the 1500m mark but responded well over the final quarter to record a time of 7:03.42 and push the Argentinians into third place by 0.11 of a second.
The women’s eight continued their excellent form this week as they qualified for the final behind The Netherlands from the repechage.
The Phoebe Stanley (VIC) stroked crew burst out from the start and held the lead at the halfway point before crossing the line behind The Netherlands in a time of 6:07.15.
The women’s quad scull of Kerry Hore (TAS), Dana Faletic (TAS), Pauline Frasca (VIC) and Amy Clay (NSW) meanwhile stormed home from lane 5 to qualify for the final.
Australia trailed Great Britain and China on the run into the line but a superb final push saw Australia pass China and claim the last qualifying position by 0.16 of a second in a time of 6:20.06.
The men’s four of Joshua Dunkley-Smith (VIC), Drew Ginn (VIC), James Chapman (NSW) and Will Lockwood (VIC) will be the seventh Australian crew in a final having won through directly from their heat on Friday.
The lightweight men’s four, men’s quad scull, lightweight women’s double scull and men’s pair of Brodie Buckland (NSW) and James Marburg (VIC) will all row B Finals in Sunday action.
Media contact: David Polglase 0401 453 041
Note: Foxtel will broadcast the finals session live on Foxtel on Sunday evening from 8.55pm.
Friday 25 May
RA media release:
Australian crews enjoy positive start at World Cup
The Australian Rowing Team has enjoyed a positive start at World Cup 2 with five crews winning their heats on the opening morning of competition in Lucerne, Switzerland.
14 Australian crews entered the three-day regatta, which serves as their first major European hit out of the season, and there were promising signs early on as a number of crews adapted to the fast racing on the Rotsee which saw six new world best times set.
The Australian men’s four, lightweight men’s four, women’s single scull, men’s double scull and men’s pair all won their respective heats.
David Crawshay (VIC) and Scott Brennan (TAS) set the quickest time in the men’s double scull as they continue their bid to defend their Olympic title later this year in London.
Racing in heat 3, Crawshay and Brennan stopped the clock in a time of 6:18.11 to comfortably progress to the semi finals tomorrow.
Equally impressive were the new men’s four combination of Joshua Dunkley-Smith (VIC), Drew Ginn (VIC), James Chapman (NSW) and Will Lockwood (VIC) who won the second heat to earn passage directly to the final on Sunday.
After Great Britain set a new world best time of 5:37.86 in the first heat, Australia responded to be a second quicker at the 1000m mark, before easing off in the closing stages to cross the line in a time of 5:44.70.
Kim Crow (VIC), just two days after qualifying the women’s single scull for the 2012 London Olympic Games, produced another confident display to win her heat.
Crow enjoyed a strong start and held the lead from start to-finish to win in a time of 7:27.09 and earn herself a middle lane for the semi-final on Saturday.
World champions Sam Beltz (TAS), Ben Cureton (WA), Todd Skipworth (WA) and Anthony Edwards (TAS) also won their heat of the lightweight men’s four, finishing almost three and a half seconds clear of Germany.
Brodie Buckland (NSW) and James Marburg (VIC) gained the upper hand in the race to be named as the Australian men’s pair as they won their heat.
With a decision still to be made on who will row the men’s pair in London, Buckland and Marburg continued their good form together and recorded a time of 6:33.54.
Australian team captain Sarah Tait (VIC) joined Kate Hornsey in the women’s pair to finish second in their heat behind the USA and also earn themselves a row in the semi-finals.
The men’s eight (2nd in heat), women’s eight (3rd), lightweight women’s double scull (4th), men’s quad scull (3rd), women’s quad scull (5th) and lightweight men’s pair (3rd) will all race repechages in order to progress to the next stage of racing in their respective events.
Media contact: David Polglase 0401 453 041
Friday 25 May
Broadcast of Lucerne World Cup
Rowing Australia is pleased to advise the broadcast arrangements for the 2012 Lucerne World Cup.
The second finals session will be broadcast live on Foxtel on Sunday evening from 8.55pm.
This session will include the finals of:
Men’s Quad
Lightweight Men’s four
Women’s Quad
Men’s Double
Women’s Eight
Women’s Single
Men’s Eight
The first finals will also be broadcast on delay on Foxtel on Monday 28th May at 2:30pm.
Thursday 24 May
W8+, LM2x and W1x qualify for Olympic Games
Australia has qualified 13 boats for the 2012 London Olympic Games after a final two crews were successful in the last session of the Final Olympic Qualification Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland.
Just 24 hours after the women’s eight secured their place in London, Kim Crow (VIC) swept to victory in the women’s single scull before Tom Gibson (TAS) and Rod Chisholm (NSW) secured the final qualification spot for the London Games.
In the last race of the sudden death regatta, Gibson and Chisholm required either gold or silver to progress to London and in a superb sprint to the line they overpowered USA to claim a vital second place.
2005 world champions Hungary won the race, but all eyes were on Gibson and Chisholm as they rowed through USA in the last 500m to finish second in a time of 6:28.21.
Chisholm and Gibson are now both set to compete at their second Olympic Games after making their debuts four years ago in Beijing.
Gibson reflected on the result that gained the crew qualification for London.
“The reality is if we had not got the result we needed today then we would have been on a plane home tomorrow,” Gibson said. “We knew what we needed coming into this regatta and we are both so happy to have qualified for London.
“Both our wives are over here with us, but mine was too nervous to come down to the course today.
“We can now look forward to some training in Italy at the AIS training centre ahead of World Cup 3 in Munich.”
Crow, who had already qualified the women’s double scull through her silver medal at the 2011 World Rowing Championships in Slovenia, entered the women’s single scull at this regatta to gain valuable race practice while women’s double scull partner Brooke Pratley recovered from a rib injury.
Crow qualified for the final through victories in both her heat and semi-final and at the halfway point of the pivotal race it was clear Crow would feature strongly once more.
The Victorian was just 0.09 of a second behind Denmark sculler Fie Udby Erichsen through 1000m before making her move and stamping her authority on the final.
Crow rowed away from the field to win by close to three seconds in a time of 7:38.79.
On the previous day of competition the women’s eight became the 11th Australian crew to qualify for the 2012 London Olympic Games following a superb victory at the Final Olympic Qualification Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland.
The Phoebe Stanley (VIC) stroked crew rowed from Lane 3 and started well to sit fractionally behind Belarus through 500m before powering away from the field to secure their place for London in a time of 6:12.36.
The Australian crew also featuring Sally Kehoe (QLD), Alexandra Hagan (WA), Tess Gerrand (NSW), Sarah Cook (NSW), Hannah Vermeersch (WA), Renee Chatterton (SA), Robyn Selby Smith (VIC) and coxen Lizzy Patrick (VIC) finished a length clear of Germany, who came home strongly to secure the last qualification place for London.
Shortly after the race Kehoe said the victory was just the next step for the crew on a journey that would now last another two months.
“It is a very different feeling to four years ago,” Kehoe said. “This time round we have really earned our position and fought to be here.
“We were not a priority boat but being the under dogs is working for us so far.”
The youngest member of the crew, 19-year-old Hannah Vermeersch, described the emotions after crossing the line.
“It means so much to me,” Vermeersch said. “Never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would be going to London.
“Rio was always my goal but Alex (Hagan) and I had something special in the pair earlier this year and look where we ended up.
“When we crossed the line there were so many different emotions but it was an awesome effort from everyone and we were all ecstatic.”
Coach of the women’s eight crew, Nick Garratt, said he was proud of the way the crew had approached both races at the regatta.
“I couldn’t be happier with how the girls have performed across the last three days but this is just the start for them,” Garratt said. “They have an Olympics to prepare for now.
“They always knew the other crews would throw down the challenge early in the race today, but they stuck to their plan and then finished the job superbly.”
A video of the W8+ race can be viewed on YouTube.
Rowing Australia congratulates the coaches and athletes of the W8+, LW2x and W1x on their wonderful performances in qualifying for the London Olympic Games. The Australian rowing community wishes the athletes the very best of luck for their training and preparation, and looks forward to watching the crews perform at the Olympic Games.
The Australian Rowing Team will compete at World Cup 2 starting this Friday (May 25) at the same venue in Switzerland.
It will provide the bulk of the squad their first chance to compete on the international circuit in 2012, while at the conclusion of the regatta the team will make their way to the Australian Institute of Sport’s European Training Centre to continue their preparations.
Australian Rowing Crews Qualified for 2012 London Olympic Games
Men’s Coxless Pair
Men’s Coxless Four
Men’s Coxed Eight
Men’s Double Scull
Men’s Quad Scull
Lightweight Men’s Coxless Four
Lightweight Men’s Double Scull
Women’s Single Scull
Women’s Double Scull
Women’s Quad Scull
Women’s Coxless Pair
Women’s Coxed Eight
Lightweight Women’s Double Scull
Thursday 24 May
RA media release:
Lucky number 13 for London bound rowers
Australia has qualified 13 boats for the 2012 London Olympic Games after a final two crews were successful in the last session of the Final Olympic Qualification Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland.
Just 24 hours after the women’s eight secured their place in London, Kim Crow (VIC) swept to victory in the women’s single scull before Tom Gibson (TAS) and Rod Chisholm (NSW) secured the final qualification spot for the London Games.
In the last race of the sudden death regatta, Gibson and Chisholm required either gold or silver to progress to London and in a superb sprint to the line they overpowered USA to claim a vital second place.
2005 world champions Hungary won the race, but all eyes were on Gibson and Chisholm as they rowed through USA in the last 500m to finish second in a time of 6:28.21.
Chisholm and Gibson are now both set to compete at their second Olympic Games after making their debuts four years ago in Beijing.
Gibson reflected on the result that gained the crew qualification for London.
“The reality is if we had not got the result we needed today then we would have been on a plane home tomorrow,” Gibson said. “We knew what we needed coming into this regatta and we are both so happy to have qualified for London.
“Both our wives are over here with us, but mine was too nervous to come down to the course today.
“We can now look forward to some training in Italy at the AIS training centre ahead of World Cup 3 in Munich.”
Crow, who had already qualified the women’s double scull through her silver medal at the 2011 World Rowing Championships in Slovenia, entered the women’s single scull at this regatta to gain valuable race practice while women’s double scull partner Brooke Pratley recovered from a rib injury.
Crow qualified for the final through victories in both her heat and semi-final and at the halfway point of the pivotal race it was clear Crow would feature strongly once more.
The Victorian was just 0.09 of a second behind Denmark sculler Fie Udby Erichsen through 1000m before making her move and stamping her authority on the final.
Crow rowed away from the field to win by close to three seconds in a time of 7:38.79.
The Australian Rowing Team will compete at World Cup 2 starting this Friday (May 25) at the same venue in Switzerland.
It will provide the bulk of the squad their first chance to compete on the international circuit in 2012, while at the conclusion of the regatta the team will make their way to the Australian Institute of Sport’s European Training Centre to continue their preparations.
Australian Rowing Crews Qualified for 2012 London Olympic Games
Men’s Coxless Pair
Men’s Coxless Four
Men’s Coxed Eight
Men’s Double Scull
Men’s Quad Scull
Lightweight Men’s Coxless Four
Lightweight Men’s Double Scull
Women’s Single Scull
Women’s Double Scull
Women’s Quad Scull
Women’s Coxless Pair
Women’s Coxed Eight
Lightweight Women’s Double Scull
Media contact: David Polglase 0401 453 041
Wednesday 23 May
Women’s Eight qualifies for London Olympics
The women’s eight has become the 11th Australian crew to qualify for the 2012 London Olympic Games following a superb victory at the Final Olympic Qualification Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland.
The Phoebe Stanley (VIC) stroked crew rowed from Lane 3 and started well to sit fractionally behind Belarus through 500m before powering away from the field to secure their place for London in a time of 6:12.36.
The Australian crew also featuring Sally Kehoe (QLD), Alexandra Hagan (WA), Tess Gerrand (NSW), Sarah Cook (NSW), Hannah Vermeersch (WA), Renee Chatterton (SA), Robyn Selby Smith (VIC) and coxen Lizzy Patrick (VIC) finished a length clear of Germany, who came home strongly to secure the last qualification place for London.
Shortly after the race Kehoe said the victory was just the next step for the crew on a journey that would now last another two months.
“It is a very different feeling to four years ago,” Kehoe said. “This time round we have really earned our position and fought to be here.
“We were not a priority boat but being the under dogs is working for us so far.”
The youngest member of the crew, 19-year-old Hannah Vermeersch, described the emotions after crossing the line.
“It means so much to me,” Vermeersch said. “Never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would be going to London.
“Rio was always my goal but Alex (Hagan) and I had something special in the pair earlier this year and look where we ended up.
“When we crossed the line there were so many different emotions but it was an awesome effort from everyone and we were all ecstatic.”
Coach of the women’s eight crew, Nick Garratt, said he was proud of the way the crew had approached both races at the regatta.
“I couldn’t be happier with how the girls have performed across the last three days but this is just the start for them,” Garratt said. “They have an Olympics to prepare for now.
“They always knew the other crews would throw down the challenge early in the race today, but they stuck to their plan and then finished the job superbly.”
Rowing Australia congratulates the coach and athletes of the Women’s Eight on their wonderful performance in qualifying for the London Olympic Games. The Australian rowing community wishes the girls the very best of luck for their training and preparation, and looks forward to watching the crew perform at the Olympic Games.
A video of the race can be viewed on YouTube.
Earlier in the day Australia qualified another two boats for finals with both the women’s single scull and lightweight men’s double scull to race for Olympic berths on Wednesday evening.
Kim Crow (VIC) achieved a start-to-finish victory in the women’s single scull, while Tom Gibson (TAS) and Rod Chisholm overhauled Spain in the third 500m to power away to a comfortable victory.
Crow requires third or better in her final to secure Australia the women’s single scull position in London, while Gibson and Chisholm must finish first or second.
Tuesday 22 May
Ballarat ready for Masters Champs
Lake Wendouree will again return to the national stage at the 2012 Australian Masters Rowing Championships this weekend.
Following many years in drought – some of which saw the lake empty, the lake is looking a picture and promises to provide all athletes with a full range of facilities over the intensive regatta weekend.
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Looking to the new ‘row through’ start pontoon, at last weekend's Rowing Victoria Masters Championships. |
Matt Draper, Rowing Australia’s National Development & Events Director was in Ballarat to view preparations for the regatta and paid tribute to the Ballarat City Council (BCC) and the local Rowing Association.
“When we were first approached by Ballarat and Rowing Victoria to support the refilling of the lake, we had no idea that so much could be achieved in such a short time. The BCC, Ballarat Rowing Association and the broader community of Ballarat should be very proud of what they have done. The FISA Masters Commission have undoubtedly seen the potential and the full package that Ballarat offers competitors, when they awarded Victoria and Australia the 2014 FISA Masters Championships,” said Draper.
“With the help of the Victorian Major Events Company (and its Development Manager, former Oarsome Foursome member, and AOC Chef de Mission for London, Nick Green), I'm very pleased at where we are at this point in time”, said Eric Waller, President of the Ballarat Rowing Association.
With cold and wet weather predicted, Waller recommended that all competitors come prepared. “We will be making all the provisions that we can to welcome competitors to Ballarat and assure everyone that “Ballarat is back!”
The Australian Masters Rowing Championships begins this Thursday 24th and concludes just after lunch Sunday 27th May.
Friday 18 May
Exciting Australian rowing coaching opportunities
Rowing Australia Ltd is seeking expressions of interest (EOI) for key positions in its national high performance system.
The national high performance system incorporates the National Rowing Centre of Excellence (NRCE) and the network of State Institute and Academy of Sport Rowing Programs.
The NRCE is a joint venture between Rowing Australia (RA) and the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS). It incorporates RA’s High Performance Program and the AIS Scholarship and National Camps Programs. The primary objective of the NRCE is to achieve sustainable medal winning performances by Australia at Olympic and Paralympic Games consistent with the Rowing Australia High Performance Plan. The NRCE is managed by a Joint Management Committee (JMC) of RA and AIS personnel and is located at the AIS Rowing Facility in Canberra.
The seeking of EOI’s is part of new quadrennial process whereby key positions in the Australian high performance rowing network are declared open to expressions of interest prior to each summer Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The EOI process is a means of determining market interest in positions. It will be used as part of a process of making informed retention and recruitment decisions for key positions immediately after the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games. It may also be relied upon as the sole means of advertising for the recruitment of those positions.
If you wish to be considered for a key role within this exciting and dynamic high performance rowing environment, your expression of interest should provide specific reference to the position or range of positions that you wish to be considered for. You may express interest in one or several position/s in the same letter.
Positions for consideration include:
National Rowing Centre of Excellence
1. Head National/AIS Coach – Men; position description (pdf, 111kb)
2. Head National/AIS Coach – Women; position description (pdf, 115kb)
3. Senior AIS Coach – Men; position description (pdf, 111kb)
4. Senior AIS Coach – Women; position description (pdf, 111kb)
5. Senior AIS/National Coach – Paralympic; position description (pdf, 479kb)
6. Assistant AIS/National Coach – Paralympic; position description (pdf, 479kb)
High Performance Network Rowing Programs
1. Rowing Coach – Tasmanian Institute of Sport; position description (pdf, 279kb)
2. Rowing Head Coach – New South Wales Institute of Sport
3. Other positions in State Institute and Academy of Sport rowing programs may become available during the EOI process
Expressions of interest in the form of a resume and a one page cover letter must be lodged with mtreglown@rowingaustralia.com.au by 5.00pm Australian EST on Monday 3 September, 2012. Your EOI will be assessed against the selection criteria stated in each job description. If you wish to provide additional information that you believe will assist in that assessment you are welcome to do so. All expressions of interest that are received will be acknowledged.
All enquiries about the positions and the EOI process should be directed to:
Andrew Dee – RA Chief Executive Officer, by email: adee@rowingaustralia.com.au or Ph: +61 417 687 418
Colin Smith – RA President, by email: csmith@globalmediasports.com or Ph: +61 411 850 133
Please note that both Colin and Andrew will be attending the Samsung World Cup Regatta in Lucerne if prospective candidates wish to discuss any of these opportunities in person.
