New Zealand rowing greats Hamish Bond and Mahe Drysdale will have some difficult decisions to make after the pair missed out on qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics at the Rowing World Championships this morning.
The duo were part of the New Zealand eight which needed to make the top five in their final in Austria to seal a spot at Tokyo next July. However, they fell .5 of a second short, finishing sixth - and last - in the final which was won by the German crew.
There is a potential lifeline for the eight, with the last-chance qualification regatta in Lucerne in May offering two final qualification spots, with seven boats to compete in Tokyo.
However, Rowing New Zealand have indicated they wouldn't send boats to Switzerland unless there were extenuating circumstances, and by the time that regatta comes around, Bond and Drysdale may have already opted to take a different path at this summer's national trials.
One potentially alluring option could be the singles sculls seat currently occupied by Robbie Manson. Drysdale, New Zealand's greatest single sculler, failed to beat out Manson previously, but may be motivated to have another shot, while Bond's skillset has always made him a potential strong contender for the single seat.
