#Rowing: Skibbereen added four titles to their already weighty tally on the first day of the Irish Rowing Championships at the National Rowing Centre today. Paul O’Donovan won the senior single sculls and teamed up with Mark O’Donovan, Shane O’Driscoll and his brother Gary in the senior four – both were done in new record times for the course. Paul and Gary also won the senior doubles. The Skibbereen women’s four also won well, in a new best time for the course.
NUIG also took four titles: the men’s intermediate coxed four and club eight and the women’s club coxed four and novice coxed quadruple.
Cork Boat Club proved best in the women’s intermediate eight and also won perhaps the best race of the day: Barry O’Flynn was severely tested by Jack Dorney in the junior single sculls but fought back after being passed and won by a length.
The Old Collegians victory in the women’s senior double was straightforward: Sanita Puspure and Claire Lambe were by far the best crew.
This was the last final of the day, while UCC had won the first, taking the men’s novice coxed quadruple.
Neptune and St Joseph’s tried to rein them in, but the men’s junior eights final was a surprsingly straightforward affair for winners Enniskillen, who also won the women’s junior four. Lee’s Margaret Cremen and Aoife Lynch were also in control in the women’s junior double, as were Hannah Scott and Katie Shirlow in the intermediate pair.
Irish Rowing Championships, National Rowing Centre, Day One (Selected Results)
Men
Eight – Club: NUIG 5:53.60. Junior: Enniskillen 5:47.96.
Four – Senior: Skibbereen 5:55.33. Inter, coxed: NUIG 6:13.38.
Sculling, Quadruple – Novice, coxed: UCC 6:39.37.
Double – Senior: Skibbereen 7:06.89.
Single – Senior: Skibbereen (P O’Donovan) 6:48.19. Junior: Cork (B O’Flynn) 7:04.06.
Women
Eight – Intermediate: Cork 6:22.06.
Four – Senior: Skibbereen 6:40.58. Club, coxed: NUIG 7:10.92. Junior: Enniskillen 6:57.94.
Pair – Inter: Bann 7:19.32.
Sculling, Quadruple – Novice, coxed: NUIG 7:36.02. Double – Senior: Old Collegians 6:59.997. Junior: Lee 7:09.86.