One of the most brutal events on the World Rowing calendar kicks off tomorrow morning; the Final Olympic and Paralympic Qualification Regatta, also frequently known as the 'Regatta of Death'. Three days of racing will take place on the Rotsee in Lucerne, Switzerland where nearly 60 nations put their foot in the race for the final tickets to Paris.
Three crews from Ireland will take to the water, hoping to come away with the golden tickets on Tuesday afternoon.
The Women's Four of Emily Hegarty, Eimear Lambe, Natalie Long and Imogen Magner are getting the racing started for the Irish tomorrow morning for their preliminary race. All six crews in this event will progress to the final on Tuesday where just the top two crews will make it to this summer's Olympics. Having qualified the Women's Four for Tokyo in 2021 at this event, there are strong hopes for this crew following their performance at World Cup I earlier in the year. A crew to watch out for is the Danish four that finished just behind Ireland at World Cup I in Varese, Italy.
The first three scullers across the line on Sunday in Sanita Puspure's Heat will move into the A/B Semifinals on Monday. After spending time in the Women's Double and Women's Four over the last few years Puspure is back in the single looking to qualify for what would be her fourth Olympic Games. Due to the relocation of the host nation entry, there are three spots up for grabs for Paris in the Women's Single this year. Unfortunately, that additional spot is to be allocated to the highest placing country that does not already have a boat qualified for the Games. As Ireland already has six boats secured, Sanita will need to finish in the top two to guarantee her place in the single.
In by far the largest entered event, Konan Pazzaia from Queen's University Belfast BC will be going up against 29 other athletes in the Men's Single. Similar to the Women's Single, there are three spots up for grabs in the Men's Single but Pazzaia will again need to be in the top two to secure a place for Paris. In tomorrow's Heat, Konan faces USA, Ivory Coast, Sudan, Ukraine and Sweden with the fastest four progressing directly into the Quarterfinals on Monday.
Sunday Schedule (IST)
10:17am - W4- Preliminary Race
10:41am - W1x Heat
10:53am - M1x Heat
Selected Irish Team
Women's Four
Emily Hegarty - Skibbereen Rowing Club
Eimear Lambe - Old Collegians Boat Club
Natalie Long - Lee Valley Rowing Club
Imogen Magner - Carlow Rowing Club
COACH - Giuseppe DeVita
Women's Single
Sanita Puspure - Old Collegians Boat Club
COACH - Ashlee Rowe
Men's Single
Konan Pazzaia - Queen's University Belfast Boat Club
COACH - Fran Keane
Staff
High Performance Director - Antonio Maurogiovanni
Team Physio - Heather O'Brien
Team Doctor - George Fuller
