New Zealand men’s double scullers Chris Harris and Jack Lopas missed a place in the A final when they finished fourth in their semifinal, with a late sprint not quite enough to haul in Poland for one of the three places available. But Emma Twigg’s medal prospects in the women’s single scull event continue to bloom after the New Zealander romped to a win in her quarterfinal, sending her into Wednesday’s semis. The 34-year-old was so far ahead in the third quarter of her 2000m race that the second and third placed scullers were out of the TV picture, allowing her to ease down in the latter stages to win in a time of 7:54:96.
Double duty for New Zealand rowing duo on same day at Tokyo Olympics stuff.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from stuff.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
New Zealand will be desperate to win their eights heat, with only the first boat advancing directly to the final on Friday, with the other crews having to contest a repechage during the week – an extra race the star Kiwi duo won’t want on an already taxing programme. The NZ eight is drawn in the first heat along with Canada, China and Great Britain. The other heat consists of just three boats – Australia, Romania and the United States.
STUFF
The pressure is on for the rowing squad to deliver more success. The change in schedule also forced Hamish Bond to pass his flagbearer duties for Friday night’s opening to boxer David Nyika, with the dual Olympic gold medallist part of the men’s eight.
They duly won their pairs heat to progress directly to the semifinals on Tuesday and then were part of the NZ women’s eight which won their heat in dramatic fashion with a surging finish to seal an automatic place in Friday’s final. “It didn t phase us too much,” Gowler said after the eights heat. “We ve done two races in a day multiple times, so I think we were almost happy that we ll have another extra day off.” Prendergast and Gowler are the defending world champions – from 2019 – in the pair and were also part of the Kiwi women’s eight which also won gold in Austria two years ago at the last rowing worlds champs to be held before the Tokyo Olympics.
Comfortable start for NZ rowers in Tokyo rnz.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from rnz.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.