Rowing: A bitter row has erupted in Trinity College over action by the college sporting authorities against the crew that won the colours race, the Gannon Cup, last weekend.
The oarsmen have been told not to use college sporting equipment and not to enter the Trinity boathouse for a month because authorities were offended by comments in a version of the programme for the Gannon Cup which appeared on the Internet.
The programme traditionally pokes fun in a lurid and lighthearted way.
The crew is still hopeful of appearing in tomorrow's Neptune Regatta after a hearing in the college today. To lose out on competition and training at this time of year could effectively ruin the season of a crew which was a strong contender to win the national intermediate title.
Neptune hardly needed whatever publicity this generates to push tomorrow's regatta - starting at 7.30 a.m. and due to finish at 8.06 p.m., it is one of the longest single days of activity ever run by an Irish club. The entries in the novice, junior and intermediate events are impressive, with no less than 13 men's intermediate fours entered.
Commercial run their own regatta on Sunday, with two senior men's eights entered in the club's name, and have also entered two in tomorrow's regatta, where they face Lady Elizabeth, UCD and an eight from the host club which may feature international lightweight oarsmen Derek Holland and Neil Casey.
That elite international group will soon have a new entrant thanks to the national trials in Cork which finished yesterday.
Niall O'Toole, the first Irish rower to win World Championship gold, in 1991 in Vienna, may be 34 but he blew the opposition away this week.
"In my history of doing this type of trial I've never seen such a dominant performance," said Richard Parr, Ireland's high performance director. In lightweight singles, pairs and ergometer tests the Commercial man stood out from the rest.
Another former world champion, Sinéad Jennings, is also in the frame for Athens. She will team up with Heather Boyle in a lightweight double set to compete at the Olympic Qualifier in June if it proves itself in the Duisberg regatta and the Munich World Cup in late May.
A men's heavyweight four of Serryth Colbert, Alan Martin, Kenny McCarthy and John Forde are also set to take this route, and Scullers Paul O'Sullivan, Seán Jacob and Seán Casey will be given a chance in Duisberg.
