The Irish women were out in force at the Rowing World Cup 1 in Belgrade, Serbia which saw four women's crews competing on the international stage.
Sanita Puspure, two time Irish Olympian, took home silver at the Rowing World Cup in Belgrade, behind the Swiss sculler, in the women's single sculls. A well deserved achievement for the athlete who has been a strong contender in her category for several years and who we look forward to following in the upcoming World Cup events, the next of which will take place in Austria, starting on the 21st of June.
Sanita came in first in her heat, progressing to the semi-final in which she came second to Denmark's Erichsen by less than a second. Sanita then pushed on in the final and put over six seconds between her and the Dane rower, the difference between second and sixth place in Final A. Final A displayed some fast, competitive rowing from all athletes who finished within 9 seconds of each other. See some of the highlights of the final below.
Aileen Crowley and Monika Dukarska were competing in the women's double sculls, one of the new combinations in Irish rowing. The duo progressed to the semi-finals, of which three boats were then to progress to Final A. They were hot on the heels of the Belarussian double, just two seconds behind, which led them to 4th place, just outside qualifying for Final A. Crowley and Dukarska then competed in Final B, finishing third in the final and ninth overall. The Swiss crew finished 15 seconds behind France in the semi-final, but put in a great race when they met again in Final B, just pipping the French by 0.09 seconds to claim first place. Ireland came in at 7.03.79 mins, ten seconds ahead of the Hungarians behind them.
Aifric Keogh and Emily Hegarty, both of University College Cork, were competing in the women's pair event and like their teammates in the double, put in a strong performance and finished ninth overall (third in Final B). Final B was a tight race, with the top four crews finishing within 4 seconds of each other - the Irish crew in a time of 7.16.37 mins. Aifric Keogh and Aileen Crowley previously competed as a pair at World Cup 2 in Poznan and the World Championships in Sarasota. They took home a bronze medal from Paolo d’Aloja Memorial International Regatta in Piediluco in April this year. Both athletes are competing well in their new crews and will hopefully build on their success as competitions continue over the summer.
The Irish women's lightweight double sculls was made up of Denise Walsh and Margaret Cremen. Denise competed last year at the World Cup and World Championships in a single scull but was joined by the 19 year old to make up the Irish lightweight double. They didn't qualify for the semi-finals directly from the heats but progressed later from the repechage. The double then came sixth in their semi-final which led them to Final B of the event and then finished twelfth overall, sixth in Final B. Another new combination, we look forward to seeing what these women can do on the international stage.
Ireland also had success at the British National Schools' Regatta on Dorney Lake which took place from the 24th - 26th May. Fermoy's Ellie O'Reilly and Gill McGirr displayed great talent and promise at the regatta when the stormed down the course to win gold in the Championship Pair event, 4.5 seconds ahead of their closest competitors. A great win for the girls and a proud day for Ireland.
Most Irish clubs were in action this weekend with athletes travelling overseas to London Metropolitan Regatta and others to Carlow.
Two NUIG and Tribesmen composite crews competed in the Women's Challenge 8+ Final A, finishing third and seventh. Commercial women finished second in Women's Challenge 8+ Final C, with two Trinity crews coming in sixth and seventh in the same race. Another NUIG/Tribesmen composite finished first in the Women's Tier 2 4+. Claire Feerick of Neptune finished second in the Women's Tier 2 single sculls. A full list of results can be found here.
Carlow Regatta took place over two days with the highest wins from Carlow (18), Fermoy (15) and Castleconnell (14) boat clubs. Carlow had great success in the quadruple sculling events, winning both the Women's Club 2 and J18A events. There was an abundance of junior scullers out competing at the event, a positive thing to see in Irish rowing. A number of recreational rowing events also took place, bringing more fun and excitement to the regatta.
With an exciting rowing calendar ahead, check in again for more rowing news at Her Sport!
