British Rowing chief Brendan Purcell paid tribute to the spirit and resilience of the men's quadruple sculls as they clinched gold at the World Rowing Cup in Switzerland.
John Collins, Jonny Walton, Graeme Thomas and Tom Barras secured the top spot on Lake Rotsee in Lucerne, coming back from fourth place at the halfway stage of the race to power their way to the finish line first with a time of 05:44.25 minutes.
It was the quad team’s second gold of the World Rowing Cup series, with the first coming in Belgrade in the World Cup I at the start of June.
Having failed to qualify for the A final on the second leg of the series in Linz, Austria, when the quad team finished fourth in the semi-finals, Purcell praised the efforts of the men in turning their fortunes back around.
“It was fantastic to see the quad take the gold medal,” said director of performance Purcell.
“I know they were disappointed when they didn’t execute the potential performance level they wanted to in Linz, so it’s great to see them refocus over the last three weeks and deliver.”
Purcell also highlighted the overall success of the British team, who finished third in the overall World Cup standings with 104 points.
He added: “We can be pleased with the performances of the GB athletes out here in Lucerne, with seven of our eight crews finishing in the top 10, whilst recognising the areas for gain we can still strive for over the next few months.”
There was more British representation in the finals on Sunday, as the men’s four team of Harry Glenister, George Rossiter, Rob Hurn and Sholto Carnegie finished fourth, ahead of the World Cup-leading Germans.
Matt Rossiter and Ollie Cook claimed a top five finish in the men’s pair final, while Ellie Lewis, Gemma Hall, Fran Rawlins and Maddie Arlett missed out on bronze by three tenths of a second on Saturday.
The next major meet will come in North Lanarkshire as the British rowers take to Scottish waters at the 2018 European Rowing Championships in August, with the squad expected to be announced on July 19. Picture credit: Naomi Baker Sportsbeat 2018