29th INTERNATIONAL BELGIAN SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

Ghent, Belgium

12-13 May 2007

Report by

Leander Press Officer

Robert Treharne Jones

14 May: "A really good club performance overall - we won the big events" was how Leander coach Rob Morgan described the development squad's performance after a successful weekend at Ghent International Regatta in Belgium.

The squad came home with three gold medals and a clutch of silver and bronze, with the men's senior A eight, coached by Ben Lewis, coming in for special praise after their win on the second day of the event.

The regatta got off to a dismal start on Saturday, with wet and windy conditions producing a cross-tail wind but no real effect on the lane fairness. The Leander performance of the day came with a win in the men's coxless fours, which had to be restarted after Skoll, the Dutch university, took a flier in the first attempt. Leander were well up with the pack until Dan Marett made a call at 1250m and the crew pushed clear, and not even a fight back by London RC could prevent a fine win. The victory was especially sweet for Ray Poulter, recently returned to training after injury, for whom it was his first win in any event!

The men's coxed four came third behind the Henley RC four which is heading for the Britannia Challenge cup at the Royal Regatta - the result reversed the positions across the line from Wallingford the previous week. Meanwhile the men's eight could only manage fourth in their final after an impressive heat win. Osnabruck and Oxford Brookes made all the running while Trinity College Dublin just squeezed through for third on the line.

In the lightweight single sculls the two Andys - Dax and Berridge - progressed from their heats in fine form on both days of racing, with Andy Dax just finishing ahead, taking bronze on Saturday and silver on Sunday.

Rachel Loveridge and Lou Rowbotham took bronze in the women's double on Saturday but Rowbotham sprained a rib which put her out of competition the following day. Loveridge won her heat but then came up against world champion Ekaterina Karsten in the final. The Belarussian took yet another win to add to her overloaded trophy cabinet while Loveridge finished fourth.

Sunday's racing gave a win for the men's senior B four who rowed through two Dutch university crews who led to 1000m and nearly got clear water ahead of the field. But Leander came back strongly and were themselves more than a length ahead at the finish. The men's senior A four, all of whom competed in the eight at Wallingford, were well in contention in their final but by halfway Brookes spurted to go 3/4 length clear and Leander could not make up the deficit.

The regatta finished with the men's eights final in which Leander led from start to finish and won by a length on the line.

RESULTS AND PROGRESSION CHART

Figures indicate position in each race

DNQ= Did not qualify

8 May 2007: Just six days after a successful weekend at Wallingford the Leander development athletes, sponsored by Invesco Perpetual, will next head off to the Ghent International Regatta in Belgium.

This two-day events combines the Belgian national championships with plenty of international opposition. This year's field not only includes European nations such as Germany, Denmark, Ireland, Belarus, France and the Netherlands - crews from Israel, Tunisia, Cyprus and Algeria will be competing and there's even a handful of athletes from Venezuela and India! It all adds up to a club-focussed event and gives many of the crews their first opportunity at a full-blown international regatta.

The Leander crews will once again be doubling up on each of the two days of competition to maximise the racing opportunities. The elite men's four which took first place last weekend are looking set to make it two in a row, while Rachel Loveridge and Lou Rowbotham in the women's double will be hoping to go one better than the second place they took at Wallingford.

ENDS