#ROWING: Paul O’Donovan and Sanita Puspure headed the rankings on the first day of the Ireland Trial at the National Rowing Centre in Cork today. O’Donovan, who is still just 19 and a lightweight, was the fastest single sculler on the water. In sometimes difficult headwind conditions he hit 85.5 per cent of projected world gold medal winning time for an under-23 lightweight. Puspure was the fastest woman and her per centage as an openweight single sculler was 84.42.
Ireland Trials, National Rowing Centre, Cork (Selected Results (provisional); Ranked by Time and Per Centage of projected World Gold Medal Time)
Men
Pair – Under-23: 1 M Pukelis, K Neville 7:19.33 (79.67), 2 R O’Callaghan, R Bennett 7:20.13 (79.52). Junior: 1 B Keohane, D Keohane 7:24.93 (78.66), 2 E Murray, B Rix 7:39.46 (76.18), 3 K Fallon, J Bennett 7:41.17 (75.89).
Sculling, Single – Senior: 1 J Keohane 7:31.69 (81.91 per cent), 2 D Neale 7:45.56 (79.47). Under-23: 1 A Harrington 7:33.35 (81.61), 2 D Quinlan 7:46.62 (79.29), 3 T Oliver 7:50.01 (78.72).
Lightweight Single – Under-23: 1 P O’Donovan 7:24.47 (85.50), 2 S O’Driscoll 7:33.88 (83.72), 3 B Beck 7:40.24 (82.57).
Junior: 1 D O’Malley 7:39.10 (80.59), 2 C Carmody 7:43.20 (79.88), 3 S Mulvaney 7:49.15 (78.87).
Women
Pair – Junior: 1 N Casey, E McCarthy 8:28.74 (76.27), 2 Clarke, Glover 8:36.22 (75.16), 3 O’Connor, Hickey 8:40.66 (74.52).
Sculling, Double – Senior: E Moran, M Dukarska 7:41.83 (81.05)
Single – Senior: S Puspure 7:56.20 (84.42)
Lightweight Single – Senior: 1 S McCrohan 8:21.77 (83.31), 2 O Hayes 8:30.20 (81.93), 3 C Jennings 8:31.52 (81.72).
Junior: 1 E Barry 8:32.96 (78.37), 2 E Lambe 8:43.60 (76.78), 3 E Hegarty 8:48.04 (76.13).