Cohen shows speed at New Zealand rowing champs

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22/02/2011 11:22 CET

The highlight of New Zealand’s rowing season, New Zealand Rowing Championships turned up some unexpected results amongst the elite squad races. Perhaps one of the biggest surprises came in the men’s single scull when Nathan Cohen produced a stunning race to beat four-time World Champion, Mahe Drysdale by seven seconds.

Cohen, who became a World Champion for the first time last year when he won the men’s double sculls (with Joseph Sullivan), used a powerful second half race to deny Drysdale of the gold. Cohen’s win broke a six-year winning streak by Drysdale in the single at the New Zealand championships. The 2009 World Champion in the lightweight men’s double, Peter Taylor, finished third ahead of Belgium’s top sculler, Tim Maeyens. Maeyens has been training in New Zealand in recent months.

Drysdale recently revealed that a back injury had meant a change to his training programme with a switch to less training time in the boat. However, Drysdale asserted after the race that his back had caused him no problems during the race.

Cohen won a second gold in the men’s double sculls racing with his former partner, Matthew Trott. Cohen beat Sullivan who finished second. Drysdale and Taylor partnered up to finish quite far back in third.

Half of the World Champion men’s pair, Hamish Bond, walked away from the championships with gold in every men’s sweep event. Bond rowed against his usual pairs partner, Eric Murray, and denied Murray of any gold medals. In the pair Bond raced with national team member from the four, Jade Uru. Bond and Uru also teamed up in the four to win along with the return of Carl Meyer to rowing.

Meyer raced in the men’s four at the Beijing Olympics and then took time off from rowing after 2008. Now married to Caroline Evers-Swindell, Meyer has decided to come back and aim for the London Olympics.

In the women’s pair current World Champion, Rebecca Scown won with national team member Lousie Trappitt. Scown’s World Champion partner, Juliette Haigh did not race due to injury.

New Zealand’s top woman single sculler Emma Twigg made easy work of her specialty event. Twigg won by a huge 11 seconds over Lucy Strack in second while Fiona Bourke finished third. Strack raced at last year’s World Rowing Championships in the lightweight double.

The New Zealand Rowing Championships took place in Twizel, in the central South Island of New Zealand. The championships are held at the end of each season and are followed a week later by trials for the New Zealand national team.

Trialists include the post-Beijing Olympic return of Carl Meyer and James Dallinger. For a list of national team trialists: here.