[Rowing

Press, 5 September 1983, Page 22

[Rowing

NZPA Duisburg The New Zealand coxed four had an impressive prelude to this morning’s final at the world rowing championships in Duisburg, West Germany.

The four took its semifinal easily without having to pull out one of its devastating sprints, and crossed the line still upping the stroke rate. The crew showed how easily it had done it by turning round at the finish and rowing straight back up to the start line without any of the crew being bent double with exhaustion, which has now become the common sight for all crews finishing at the championships.

The row back up past the grandstand was made to the sound of the mainly German crowd clapping and calling out “Kivi, Kivi,

Kivi.” It was the same chant that had encouraged the New Zealanders during the race.

The race plan of the four only differed slightly from the one they used in the heats. Instead of waiting for the 1500 m mark before going into the racing rate of 38, the New Zealanders did it 100 m earlier.

At that stage they lay in third position behind East Germany and Czechoslovakia. At the 1000 m mark, which the New Zealanders reached in 3min 3.905, the order was the same. With 500 m left the New Zealanders were in front and looking very comfortable.

They crossed the line in 6min 9245, with East Germany second in 6:10.83 and Czechoslovakia third in 6:13.07.

Only the Soviet Union bettered the Kiwis’ time, finishing their semi-final in 6:08.16. The other crews in the coxed four final are the Soviet Union, East Germany and Czechoslovakia, West Germany, and the surprise of the semi-finals, Britain. The fours coach, Brian Hawthorne said after the race he had been confident the four would win their semi-final but he had expected a little more opposition.

He said the four had decided before the event to row its own race for the first 1500 m and then take the other boats into consideration.

“For the first 1500 you usually always do you own thing and it’s only the last 500 m that turns into the race,” he said. For New Zealand’s single

sculler, Alan Horan, it was disappointment in not qualifying for the final but satisfaction in recording his fastest time over the 2000 m course.

He finished sixth in his semi-final but still recorded 7min 7.595, which is his best time by 6s.

Horan said the other scullers in the field had just proved too good for him but he took heart in that all except Australian Tim McLaren were full-time scullers, whereas he was a rower.

“There’s a lot of scullers who came to Duisburg who were not racing out there today. It’s been a great experience,” he said. Horan was never really in the race having fallen back to sixth after the first 500 m. He tried to come back in the last 750 m but just could not make any impression.