GB’s para-rowers won six medals in Paralympic class A finals at the Gavirate International Regatta on Lake Varese, Italy, on Saturday after predicted bad weather for Sunday forced two finals sessions in one day.

Para-cycling champion turned rower Rachel Morris, from Farnham, clocked up a double silver across her two finals of the arms-shoulders single scull (ASW1x), beaten both times by Birgit Skarstein of Norway in a reversal of the finishing positions at last year’s World Championships.

Their first encounter of Saturday was one of the paciest of the day with times not far outside world bests provoking GB’s lead para-rowing coach Tom Dyson to say: ““That was a really quick race, that was good”.

Londoner Tom Aggar, a World silver medallist last year and Paralympic Champion in 2008, battled to a silver and bronze in what could be billed GB v Ukraine especially in the evening’s final of the arms-shoulders single scull (ASM1x) in which the Ukraine took gold, silver and fourth.

Bromsgrove’s Lauren Rowles, juggling A-level revision with racing in Italy, and Northallerton’s Laurence Whiteley were also medallists twice over in the trunk-arms double scull (TAMix2x) as well as winning the non-Games category race in the TA single scull.

In the morning they won bronze behind the Netherlands and France.  By evening time they had stepped up to silver in a riveting race which was won by the French duo of Perle Bouge and Stephanie Tardieu by just two hundredths of a second.

Britain also shone in the other para-rowing class events in Gavirate, those that are not part of the Games programme currently.  Cumbernauld’s Scott Meenagh, the injured serviceman and double above the knee amputee who is a regular part of the GB Rowing Team squad, won silver twice in the trunk-arms single scull – the first behind team-mate Whiteley and the second behind Brazilian Michel Pessanha.

A spotlight also shone on another Scott, newcomer Scott Jones who took silver last night in the second-tier ASM1x final and fifth in the morning’s main ASM1x final. The recent recruit to rowing and an international debutant this weekend now has a classification for rowing and he has a pedigree as a winner.

As a 15 year-old the Cheltenham track and field athlete became World Champion in the F34 shot put and threw a world record distance.  Now 18, he is at school at Hartpury and being coached there as part of coach Tom Pattichis’ group.

The Ukraine won a close mixed coxed four final from South Africa in the morning and Australia were winners in the evening. GB’s World Champion crew did not race in Gavirate.

For media information and pictures: please contact the GB Rowing Team press office:  comms@gbrowingteam.org.uk or 07831 755351

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RESULTS

Gavirate International, Italy, Saturday 23 April

Saturday Finals – MORNING SESSION

MEN

Arms-shoulders single scull (ASM1x)

1.  Roman Polianskyi (Ukraine) 4:41.42

2.  Tom Aggar (GREAT BRITAIN) 4:49.55

3.  Sergiy Khyzhnyak (Ukraine)  4:54.52

4.  Rene Pereira (Brazil) 5:00.99

5.  Scott Jones (GREAT BRITAIN) 5:08.31

6.  Marco del Bene (Italy) 5:23.02

Trunk-arms single scull (TAM1x)

1.  Laurence Whiteley (GREAT BRITAIN) 4:23.04

2.  Scott Meenagh (GREAT BRITAIN) 4:26.31

3.  Spolon Massimo (Italy) 4:52.19

Trunk-arms single scull (TAW1x)

1.  Lauren Rowles (GREAT BRITAIN)  4:58.68

2.  Zamora Alejandrina (Mexico) 6:31.23

3.  Annika van der Meer (Netherlands C)

WOMEN

Arms-shoulders single scull (ASW1x)

1.  Birgit Skarstein (Norway) 5:21.23

2.  Rachel Morris (GREAT BRITAIN) 5:22.09

3.  Claudia Santos (Brazil) 5:33.02

4.  Eleonora de Paolis (Italy) 5:50.19

5.  Lian Deijkeri (Netherlands) 5:58.61

6.  Tuerhong Dilare (China 2) 6:10.69

MIXED

Double scull (TAMix2x)

1.  Esther Van der Loos/Corna De Konig (Netherlands) 04:01.90

2.   Perle Bouge/Stephane Tardieu (France) 04:02.27

3.  Laurence Whiteley/Lauren Rowles (GREAT BRITAIN) 04:03.04

4.  Svitlana Bohuslavska/Dmytro Ivanov (Ukraine) 04:05.11

5.  Jolanta Majka/Michal Gadowski (Poland) 04:11.25

6.  Lima Josiane/Michel Pessanha (Brazil)

Saturday finals – EVENING SESSION

MEN

Arms-shoulders single scull (ASM1x)

1.  Roman Polianskyi (Ukraine) 4:42.63

2.  Igor Bondar (Ukraine) 4:45.47

3.  Tom Aggar (GREAT BRITAIN) 4:57.41

4.  Sergiy Khyzhnyak (Ukraine)  5:05.39

5.  Rene Pereira (Brazil) 5:07.13

6.  Alexander van Holk (Netherlands) 5:08.41

Arms-shoulders single scull (ASM1x)

1.  Fabrizio Caselli (Italy) 5:09.62

2.  Scott Jones (GREAT BRITAIN) 5:17.62

3.  Marco Del Bene (Italy 2) 5:31.82

4.  Leszek Niewiarowski (Poland) 5:59.21

5.  Magno Alejandro Vera (Argentina) 6:21.26

6.  Enrico Schildberg (Germany ) DNS

Trunk-arms single scull (TAM1x)

1.  Michel Pessanha (Brazil) 4:27.89

2.  Scott Meenagh (GREAT BRITAIN) 4:30.72

3.  Nir Mayo (Israel) 4:43.38

4.  Massimo Spolon (Italy) 4:59.58

WOMEN

Arms-shoulders single scull (ASW1x)

1.  Birgit Skarstein (Norway) 5:27.87

2.  Rachel Morris (GREAT BRITAIN) 5:34.26

3.  Claudia Santos (Brazil) 5:43.86

4.  Eleonora de Paolis (Italy) 5:55.10

5.  Sandra Khumalo (South Africa) 6:19.13

MIXED

Double scull (TAMix2x)

1.  Perle Bouge/Stephane Tardieu (France) 4:06.61

2.  Laurence Whiteley/Lauren Rowles (GREAT BRITAIN) 4:06.63

3.  Esther Van der Loos/Corna De Konig (Netherlands) 4:06.79

4.  Svitlana Bohuslavska/Dmytro Ivanov (Ukraine) 4:13.51

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CREW LISTS

Gavirate International Regatta, Italy, April 22-24

*(Crews listed from bow to stroke with cox and with club, home town and date of birth).

PARA-ROWING

Days 1 and 2 (Fri/Sat)

ASW1x – Rachel Morris (Guildford RC/Farnham/25.04.79)

ASM1x – Tom Aggar (Marlow RC/Maidenhead/24.05.84)

ASM1x – Scott Jones

TAM1x – Laurence Whiteley (Tees RC/Northallerton/29.08.91)

TAM1x – Scott Meenagh (Army RC/Cumbernauld/16.09.89)

TAW1x – Lauren Rowles (Marlow RC/Birmingham/ 24.04.98)

TA2x – Laurence Whiteley/Lauren Rowles

(Tees RC/Northallerton/29.08.91)/ (Marlow RC/Birmingham/ 24.04.98)

Days 2 and 3 (Both raced on Saturday due to weather conditions)

ASW1x – Rachel Morris (Guildford RC/Farnham/25.04.79)

ASM1x – Tom Aggar (Marlow RC/Maidenhead/24.05.84)

ASM1x – Scott Jones

TAM1x – Scott Meenagh  (Army RC/Cumbernauld/16.09.89)

TA2x – Lauren Rowles/Laurence Whiteley

(Tees RC/Northallerton/29.08.91)/ (Marlow RC/Birmingham/ 24.04.98)

The post Medal haul for GB rowers in International double-header appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.

GB’s para-rowers took two wins, three silvers and a bronze in today’s finals of the Gavirate International Regatta on Lake Varese, Italy.

The titles came from Laurence Whiteley and Lauren Rowles in their respective trunk-arms single scull finals before the duo teamed up to take bronze in their Paralympic programme event, the trunk-arms mixed double scull, behind the Netherlands and France.

Rowles is currently busy juggling her A level studies and exams with rowing training.

In sunny conditions with a light tailwind Rachel Morris was involved in a fast-paced arms-shoulders single scull race in which she took sliver behind Norway’s Birgit Skarstein. The result reversed the finishing positions of the two at last year’s World Championships.

“That was a really quick race, that was good”, said GB Lead para-rowing coach Tom Dyson.

Tom Aggar also took silver in the equivalent men’s race behind relative newcomer Sergiy Khyzhnyak of the Ukraine.  Scott Jones, now in receipt of a classification, made a robust international debut for GB by taking fifth place in the same event.

Scott, aged 18, is at school at Hartpury in Gloucestershire and has transferred to rowing from shot put and discus.

Whiteley’s victory in the trunks-arms single scull came at the expense of his team-mate Scott Meenagh who came home in silver.  Meenagh will soon take part in the Invictus Games.

The Ukraine won a close mixed coxed four final from South Africa.  World silver medallists, the USA, did not race today after taking second place to the South Africans in the heats.  GB’s World Champion crew is not racing in Gavirate.

Tomorrow’s race programme at the event is under threat due to predicted severe weather conditions. More information will be posted at:  www.canottaggio.org

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For media information and pictures: please contact the GB Rowing Team press office for this event via:  comms@gbrowingteam.org.uk or 07831 755351

The post Wins and medals for para-rowers in Italy appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.

With the second of the winter assessments out of the way, it’s time to give you the low down on who’s who and what’s what ahead of this summer’s racing.

All three boat classes (arms and shoulders [AS] single scull, trunk and arms [TA] mixed double scull and legs, trunk and arms [LTA]mixed coxed four) were racing this time round, although the format for each class differed slightly.

Tom Aggar historically represents GB in the AS men’s single and in fact has dominated this event nationally and has worn the vest at every World Championship and Paralympic Games since the debut of Paralympic rowing at the 2008 Beijing Games.

At the assessment, he time-trialled along with Rachel Morris who has represented GB in the AS women’s single at the last two World Championships after transferring from hand-cycling a few years ago. They raced down the track against the clock and put down a strong marker to push on from for the rest of the season.

Laurence Whiteley was a lone ranger looking for companionship in 2013 and 2014 but has since found a female double scull partner to team up with in the form of Lauren Rowles who transferred from wheelchair track racing after competing at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Together they won a silver medal in the TA double at last year’ss World Championships after training together for just four months. This season Laurence has competition for his place in the boat and will be seat racing against Scott Meenagh, an eager Scotsman who joined our squad after sustaining injuries serving in Afghanistan, and the recent assessment was the first of those races.

In the coxed four, things are being shaken up a bit. I have stroked the boat at the last three World Championships but there is no reason to say that is the fastest combination and so we’ve been playing a bit of musical chairs.

For the last fortnight or so Pam, Gold medallist from London 2012 and four times World Champion, has been stroking the four with me sitting behind in the three seat and on training camp we tried a few other combinations too.

There are still four seats in this particular game of musical chairs though which is a relief. We seat raced this time around too but, for us, it is as much about going fast in every order and combination as it is about finding which individuals make the boat go fastest at the moment.

The results from the recent assessment won’t necessarily lead to selection for Rio but they will give our coaches and selectors a general impression of how things are going. A kind of data collection exercise, if you like, ahead of final trials. If nothing else it certainly provided a chance to open the lungs after a winter of rate 18!

The post BLOG: From low-downs to lone-rangers appeared first on 91ĚŇÉ«.