KEY POINTS:
The weather conspired against Mahe Drysdale and Rob Waddell as strong winds whipped up white caps on Lake Karapiro today, leading to the pair's race for Beijing being postponed for at least 24 hours.
The deciding duel for the Olympic single sculls berth was called off 45 minutes after Drysdale, the three-time world champion, and Waddell, the 2000 Olympic gold medallist, were expected to go head to head over the 2000m course for a third time.
The planned 9am showdown never eventuated, with the two rivals not even at the course when a Rowing New Zealand (RNZ) spokesman confirmed the race had been delayed until tomorrow.
"You'd take one look a that and go, `I'm in the gym'," Richard Gee said as the pontoons at the course near Cambridge were buffeted by a biting southwesterly.
The forecast is not promising tomorrow either, particularly in the morning, although conditions were expected to ease in the afternoon.
Gee said it was imperative all crews - not just Drysdale and Waddell - were given optimum conditions as they chased selection for the Olympics in Beijing in August.
"It's not just about the two lanes the single scullers are in," he said.
"The races with three and five boats, you wouldn't want it to be fair for one (lane) and not the other."
Gee said RNZ was relaxed about completing the trial process, saying that unlike the Olympics or a world championships, there was not a set schedule to adhere to.
"You'd have that pressure if it was the Olympics or worlds but this will begin again and conclude when it begins again and concludes.
"The most important thing is to get the job done correctly for the athletes.
"We might have another week of crappy weather, we just start again when we can."
RNZ is due to announce its Games squad for Beijing on Friday, although that announcement at Lake Karapiro is now weather dependent.
Gee doubted athletes the calibre of Waddell and Drysdale would be affected by the postponement.
"It's an outdoor sport, they're used to crappy weather affecting their training programmes.
"They're perfectly capable of dealing with it but probably a bit disappointed it's a bit of an anti-climax for them," Gee said.
Drysdale won the first trials race on Sunday before Waddell fought back to win the second yesterday and force a decider.
- NZPA
