Posted: August 24, 2016

The GB Rowing Team made a confident start to the 2016 Junior World Championships on Wednesday morning as six crews made good progress through their heats in Rotterdam.

The GB women’s four of India Somerside, Bryony Lawrence, Frances Russell and Alex Rankin had set the tone for a good morning of racing as they claimed a well-judged win in the first heat of the day.

There were three semi-final places up for grabs and they were effectively secured in the first 500m as Italy, GB and China moved clear of the field.

The Italians were about a length up at halfway but that lead was overturned in the third 500m after GB stroke Rankin – who helped the four reach the final in Rio last year – called for a push. The British boat continued to pull away as they progressed to Saturday’s semi-finals in fine style.

GB are defending champions in the men’s quadruple scull, with Josh Armstrong providing the link between last year’s history-making boat and this year’s crew which also features James Mawby, Nick Plaut and Tom Digby – the latter a silver-medallist at the past two World Juniors.

They booked their place in the quarter-finals by finishing runners-up to Germany in comfortably the fastest of the five heats. Both crews finished well clear of the field, with Germany just doing enough to hold off a late GB challenge for top spot.

Robin Dowell, Lead Coach for the GBRT Junior Team, said: “It’s been a good morning with lots of learning and the rowers are all feeling very positive.

“A number of them are experiencing the World Juniors for the first time, so it is good for them to get that first race under their belt.”

Mid-afternoon on Thursday the focus will switch to the Senior World Championships with three GB crews contesting the semi-finals.

The men’s coxed pair of Ollie Cook, Callum McBrierty and cox Henry Fieldman – the latter a gold-medallist in the boat last year – race at 2.15pm BST, followed by senior debutant Gemma Hall in the lightweight women’s single scull at 2.30pm BST. Joel Cassells and Sam Scrimgeour then continue their lightweight men’s pair title defence at 2.45pm BST.

The first medals of the week will then be handed out in the U23 World Championships, with five GB crews competing in finals.

Both the GB women’s and men’s lightweight quadruple sculls are racing in finals - Mary Wilson, Susannah Duncan, Madeleine Arlett and Ellie Lewis race at 3.30pm BST, followed by Hugo Coussens, Oliver Varley, Matthew Curtis and Gavin Horsburgh at 4.15pm BST.

A busy day will conclude with the men’s four final featuring James Johnston, Tom George, James Rudkin and Lewis McCue at 4.45pm BST.

RESULTS

(Events featuring GB Rowing Team crews only. For full results - www.worldrowing.com)

JUNIOR WOMEN

Pair – H1

1. Kallani Marchak/Kaitlyn Kynast (USA) 7:16.82
2. Margarita Georgoudi/Christina Bourmpou (Greece) 7:23.19
3. Frida Sanggaard Nielsen/Ida Petersen (Denmark) 7:27.18
4. Maya Cornut/Adele Brosse (France) 7:32.71
5. Hope Cessford/Lauren Irwin (GREAT BRITAIN) 7:42.65
6. Berre Baltaoglu/Didem Surer (Turkey) 7:45.00

Four – H1

1. India Somerside/Bryony Lawrence/Frances Russell/Alex Rankin (GREAT BRITAIN) 6:51.79
2. Laura Meriano/Benedetta Faravelli/Ludovica Braglia/Lara Maule (Italy) 6:53.74
3. Quiying Yang/Dan Li/Yuxiu Zhou/Xiangyu Song (China) 6:58.10
4. Aria Cvitanovic/Izabela Krakic/Bruna Milinovic/Julia McCullough (Croatia) 7:03.98
5. Ninna Pedersen/Emilie Jersild/Mathilde Norking/Astrid Laustsen (Denmark) 7:20.64

Quadruple scull – H3

1. Annabel Stevens/Lola Anderson/Sheyi Blackett/Lucy Glover (GREAT BRITAIN) 6:41.07
2. Magadelena Juzikova/Anna Santruckova/Pavlina Flamikova/Veronika Uhlova (Czech Republic) 6:44.45
3. Stine Eilert Mathiasen/Emma Sophie Hammer/Mette Koechs Nielsen/Liane Vestergaard (Denmark) 6:51.76
4. Ieva Medelinskaite/Aiste Andriuleviciute/Vareikaite Viktorija/Egle Bezzubovaite (Lithuania) 6:53.58
5. Dali Chivadze/Tamar Mikadze/Miriami Purtskhvanidze/Tamar Rukhadze (Georgia) 8:06.59

JUNIOR MEN

Pair – H1

1. Rudolph Querfeld/Mattijs Holler (Austria) 6:49.83
2. Nikolay Zhelyazkov/Stanimir Haladzhov (Bulgaria) 6:50.39
3. Alexander Wythe/Adam Teece (GREAT BRITAIN) 6:52.70
4. Christian Christiansen/Magnus Rathenborg (Denmark) 6:54.96
5. Christopher Kalleg Andrate/Selim Echeverria (Chile) 6:56.58
6. Matas Jakubauskas/Arnas Kazlauskas (Lithuania) 6:58.55

Four – H2

1. Oscar Lindsay/James Plaut/Oswald Stocker/Freddie Davidson (GREAT BRITAIN) 6:06.81
2. Niklas Junkes/Leon Muench/Simon Klose/Benjamin Leibelt (Germany) 6:10.39
3.Vasileios Koukoutis/Athanasios Palaiopanos/Apostolos Giannatzis/Georgios Stamos (Greece) 6:13.76
4. Ivan Rybkin/Peter Lancashire/Dylan Rupnow/Brett Vilk (Canada) 6:16.33
5. Hengze Wang/Liuyang Shi/Binghui Cui/Haotian Yang (China) 6:33.51

Coxed four – H1

1. Italy 6:21.58
2. USA 6:22.91
3. Serbia 6:24.84
4. South Africa 6:35.15
5. Matthew Rowe/Alex Green/Seb Newman/Bertie Woodward-Fisher/George Cozens (cox) (GREAT BRITAIN) 6:39.85

Eight – H1

1. Charlie Pearson/Oskar Arzt-Jones/Dom Jackson/Oliver Ayres/Patrick Adams/Benedict Aldous/Seb Benzecry/Felix Drinkall/Vlad Saigau (cox) (GREAT BRITAIN) 5:45.01
2. Italy 5:47.26
3. New Zealand 5:52.60
4. Spain 5:56.42
5. Croatia 5:59.55
6. Russia 5:59.76

Double scull – H1

1. Rory Harris/George Lawton (GREAT BRITAIN) 6:35.13
2. Ivan Rico Castro/Jordi Rodriguez (Spain) 6:39.21
3. Panagiotis Psarros/Aristeidis Grammeniatis (Greece) 6:39.64
4. Armands Celmins/Janis Timbors (Latvia) 6:41.82
5. Junya Seto/Hideo Toyama (Japan) 6:42.59
6. Jongmin Lee/Seonggwan Lee (Korea) 6:54.47

Quadruple scull – H2

1. Malte Engelbracht/Matthias Fischer/Jan Berend/Simon Schlott (Germany) 5:58.63
2. James Mawby/Thomas Digby/Josh Armstrong/Nick Plaut (GREAT BRITAIN) 6:00.93
3. Willem Buist/Lodewijk Tilanus/Charles De Monchy/Thomas Hogeboom (Netherlands) 6:12.31
4. Emiliano Soria/Joel Romero/Tobias Olay/Federico Pachecho (Argentina) 6:15.02
5. Ander Koppel/Tristan Lasn/Martin Rahuoja/Margus Kodasma (Estonia) 6:20.47