Irish heavyweight crew and Jacob show character

Rowing: World ChampionshipsIreland's heavyweight four and single sculler Seán Jacob showed plenty of fighting spirit on the first day of the World Championships at Munich yesterday. Both crews were unlucky to be drawn in heats which featured the reigning world champions, but the four finished a close-up second to Britain, and Jacob secured a guaranteed place in his quarter-final by finishing third behind Mahe Drysdale of New Zealand.

As only one crew qualified directly from their heat for the semi-final, the four must negotiate their way through a repechage tomorrow, but they will do so knowing they can mix it in exalted company.

The bottom line for this crew, as with Jacob and the lightweight four who compete today (10.12 Irish time), is to end in the top 11 and so secure an Olympic berth for their boat. The women's lightweight double, whose heat is at 9.12 today, must finish in the top eight.

For Britain's heavyweight four, ambitions have been grander. They have been unbeaten since they came together in 2005, but have found themselves under increasing pressure from New Zealand and the Netherlands this season. Yesterday France took a pop. The French led through to the first two quarters, only to be overhauled by the world champions by 1,500 metres. As the French faded, Ireland's crew of Seán O'Neill, Cormac Folan, SeáJacob and Alan Martin upped their challenge and raced Britain to the line. They were 1.59 seconds down at the finish.

Jacob also finished well to take third in his heat. There were 29 starters, and under new FISA rules where 25 or more boats are entered the "back door" of the repechages is dispensed with and the only way to the A and B semi-finals is through four quarter-finals. Only the first three from each of six heats is certain of moving forward.

Drysdale was the impressive winner yesterday, with Tim Maeyens of Belgium second. The real battle went on well behind them, as Jacob (34) established himself in third and held off challenges from Mathias Raymond of Monaco and Estonia's Leonid Gulov.

Ireland's two non-Olympic boats, lightweight scullers Orlagh Duddy and Liam Molloy, race in tomorrow's repechages after placing fourth in their heats yesterday. Duddy has had an impressive season, including a bronze medal in the second World Cup regatta in Amsterdam, but to qualify directly yesterday she would have had to win a heat involving Denmark's Maria Pertl and Austria's Michaela Taupe-Traer, both finalists at the final World Cup regatta in Lucerne last month.

Pertl, a 34-year-old who is new to the single at this level this season, has shown rapid improvement. She finished one place behind Duddy in Amsterdam, but she took bronze in Lucerne, where Duddy failed to make the final, and wrapped up qualification yesterday with a commanding performance. Taupe-Traer put in an early challenge but settled back into third as Pertl showed her determination. Switzerland's Fabiane Albrecht finished second, while Duddy held a fourth.

Molloy's race had a similar profile. Lorenzo Bertini of Italy, an Olympic bronze medallist in the lightweight four in Athens, saw off an early challenge from Germany's Jonathan Koch to take the sole qualification place. Mark Gerban of Palestine put in a surprisingly strong show to finish third.

Ireland's lightweight four have the straightforward aim of finishing in the top three today and being certainties for the quarter-finals.

The main contenders will be Italy, Australia, Ireland and Spain. There are six places for fastest losers.

Sinead Jennings and Niamh Ní Cheilleachair have a difficult heat in the lightweight women's double scull. They can avoid the repechages and go directly into Friday's semi-finals if they finish in the top two - but they are up against big hitters in Denmark and Canada.