RowingAny uncertainty over the make-up of the Ireland lightweight four for the Olympic Games has lifted with the decision of the International Rowing Committee of the Irish Amateur Rowing Union to opt for the crew which did so well in the two recent World Cup regattas.
Effectively, this means that Niall O'Toole (34), who won Ireland's first World Championship gold in Vienna in 1991, has nailed down his place. Tim Harnedy (21), who was part of the crew which qualified the boat last year, loses out.
A fourth place at the World Cup regatta in Lucerne and second in Munich suggests that, in this configuration, the crew has a real chance of qualification for the Olympic final.
Meanwhile, the news from Ireland's other Olympic crew, the lightweight double, is good, with Gearóid Towey being given the green light to resume training following the illness which forced him out of the World Cup regatta in Lucerne recently. Sam Lynch will travel to Stromstad in Sweden next Wednesday. The lightweight four leave on Tuesday.
Today is a testing one for Irish women rowers. Weather permitting, trials at the National Rowing Centre in Cork will decide who represents Ireland at the World Rowing Championships for non-Olympic events next month, while this evening UCD's women's eight will try to make it through the qualifiers for Henley Royal Regatta.
The UCD eight lost out at this stage last year, but come into this year's qualifier on the back of a good win in the intermediate event at Women's Henley.
Other Irish crews which have been asked to qualify include the Trinity and Queen's University B crews in the Temple for college eights, and the Visitors composite, which has emerged from the Irish under-23 programme. This crew, comprised of NUIG's Rob Cronin and Dave Mannion and Skibbereen's Ciarán Hayes and Richard Coakley, should make it through.
Back in Cork, little more than a week after they teamed up as a lightweight double scull in the Olympic Qualifier in Lucerne, Sinéad Jennings and Heather Boyle compete against each other.
The experienced Siobhán Jacob and Ireland's sole female competitor at the World Cup in Lucerne, Niamh Ní Cheilleachair, are also set to take part.
The most likely outcome is the choice of a lightweight single sculler, but if all prove to be of the same quality a quadruple scull may be formed.
Another Irish winning crew at Henley Women's Regatta, Joanne and Eimear Moran of the University of Sunderland, may be sent to the World Student Games, depending on how they perform in a separate test today.
The lightweight quadruple scull have been chosen as a crew for the World Championships, and will train in Ireland. Danny O'Dowd is still in this group.
The crew's bowman in Lucerne, Brian Young, has set up a draw for non-funded international athletes.
