ROWING: Rowing Australia will have 17 crews competing at the World Rowing Cup 2 from 18 to 21 June in Varese, Italy.
The event will be the first international competition this year for the team, which will include 2013 World Rowing Champion and 2014 World Rowing silver medallist, Kim Crow, as well as numerous medallists from the 2014 season.
“It’s great to be back at the world class AIS European Training Centre in Varese and preparing for my first international competition of the year. I’ve been coming to Varese to train for the past 10 years and have some great friends at the Gavirate Rowing Club. It feels like we have a home ground advantage racing on the Varese waters – the ETC is our home away from home!
“The women’s single scull field has a big field of 24 entrants, so I’m really looking forward to some tough, fast racing,” said Crow.
National Performance Director, Chris O’Brien added: “This week’s event is the start of Australia’s international season which will ultimately culminate in the 2015 World Rowing Championships which, of course, incorporate the Olympic and Paralympic Qualification for the 2016 Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games.
“The crews are looking forward to racing in Varese against good competition and focussing their attention to the important summer ahead.”
Australia’s Women’s Eight will not only compete as an Eight at World Rowing Cup 2, but will also compete in two coxless fours in order provide the athletes more racing opportunities ahead of the World Rowing Championships in Aiguebelette.
Meanwhile, the Australian Men’s Eight will not compete at World Rowing Cup 2, but will take part in the Henley Royal Regatta (1 to 5 July 2015) before joining the team at World Rowing Cup 3 in Lucerne, Switzerland a week later.
It will be an extra busy summer for the Men’s Coxless Pair of Jack Hargreaves and Nick Wheatley with the New South Welshman not only competing in the World Rowing Cups, but also the U23 World Rowing Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria and the World Rowing Championships in Aiguebelette, France.
The large sculling contingent of the squad will be hoping to replicate their good performances from 2014, including the returning partnerships of Alice McNamara and Ella Flecker in the Lightweight Women’s Double, Sally Kehoe and Olympia Aldersey in the Women’s Double and Alexander ‘Sasha’ Belonogoff and James McRae in the Men’s Double.
A crew to keep an eye out for will be the Men’s Quadruple Scull made up of Olympic medallists David Crawshay and Karsten Forsterling as well as young up-and-coming duo Cameron Girdlestone and David Watts.
ROWING AUSTRALIA
