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Watch out here comes GB's Watkins

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21/04/2011 11:31 CET

Next year the waters of Eton-Dorney, just outside of London will see the best rowers in the world compete at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Great Britain’s rowing squad is making the most of the venue being on home ground and last weekend they staged their senior team trials there.

Using the Olympic venue for trials was a strategic decision by coaches as they wanted to get the athletes used to racing under pressure on this course. Usually these trials are hidden from spectator view as they take place in Belgium at the Hazewinkel rowing course. But using the home soil of Eton-Dorney as the venue meant that a few spectators showed up.

For the second time this season Anna Watkins outrowed her double sculls partner, Katherine Grainger in the women’s single sculls race. This win breaks Grainger’s run of six consecutive singles titles. Watkins said in the GB Rowing News press release after her race, "Whilst it's nice to win, I don't really like to race against Katherine, I would far rather be in a boat with her against the rest of the world.” Watkins finished 3 ½ seconds ahead of Grainger with Beth Rodford, from the British women’s quadruple sculls coming in third.

The much anticipated men’s pair saw the return of Tom James to squad racing. James, 27, won gold at the Beijing Olympics (men’s four) before taking time out from rowing due to a back injury. James had shown in internal testing that he could be a threat to the top two sweep rowers in the squad, Andrew Triggs Hodge and Peter Reed. At these trials James was paired up with Alex Gregory and the duo led over Hodge and Reed for much of the men’s pair final. But Hodge and Reed prevailed in the end taking first, and finishing just under two seconds ahead of James and Gregory. Greg Searle and Cameron Nichol were third. Reed has now won the pairs trials seven consecutive times.

The men’s single scull has been all but owned by Alan Campbell in recent years and this year was no exception. Campbell scored his seventh title with Matthew Wells finishing second, one and a half seconds back. Sam Townsend came in third.

The lightweight men’s single also saw no change in the lead with Zac Purchase from the World Champion lightweight men’s double sculls, finishing first. Surprisingly his doubles partner Mark Hunter could only manage fourth. Rob Williams and Adam Freeman Pask took second and third respectively.

There were also no surprises in the women’s pair with world silver medallists Helen Glover and Heather Stanning finishing first. Jessica Eddie and Louisa Reeve were second with Jo Cook and Alison Knowles taking third.
One of the only upsets of the day came in the lightweight women’s single scull. Relative newcomer Kat Copeland, who has come through from the under-23 team, sneaked into second ahead Andrea Dennis. Dennis raced last year in Great Britain’s lightweight women’s quadruple sculls and was the 2010 GB trials winner. Sophie Hosking remained at the top of the lightweight heap with a first place finish.

Conditions over the two days of racing were favourable. On the first day, Saturday, a tail wind picked up in the middle of the afternoon causing some bumpy water, but for finals morning on Sunday the weather was calm, with clear skies and no wind.

The team that will compete at the first World Cup of the season, the Samsung World Rowing Cup in Munich, Germany will be announced on 11 May 2011.

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