5 SA boats in A-Finals at World Rowing Champs

The four Olympic-class boats all made it past their respective semi-finals to join the men’s coxed pair crew of David Hunt and Lawrence Britain with Willie Morgan as coxswain.

Hunt and Britain’s final will take place on Friday, while the other four crews will be back on the water on Saturday.

No matter the outcome in the finals, South Africa’s campaign at this year’s World Championships can be deemed a success as only the top six crews participate in the finals.

The lightweight women’s double sculls crew of Kirsten McCann and Ursula Grobler was in impressive form as they finished first in their semi-final for a final berth.

The duo posted the second fastest times of the semi-finals, clocking seven minutes, 05.050 seconds (7:05.050) to beat New Zealand who were breathing down their necks for most of the race.

Olympic gold medallists James Thompson and John Smith also advanced to the final of the lightweight men’s double sculls.

They had to dig deep to qualify for the final as they dropped to sixth place from fifth over the second 500m before they surged into third place, winning a close tussle with the United States and Swiss crews.

After an initial second place at the start, the men’s pair of Vincent Breet and Shaun Keeling settled into third place for a safe passage to the final.

Finally, the women’s pair of Naydene Smith and Lee-Ann Persse qualified for the final, rowing in third place from start to finish. Olympic champions Helen Glover and Heather Stanning of Great Britain won the semi-final comfortably, with Romania finishing in second place.
– Sapa