Rowing: More NZ crews into finals

Lightweight single sculler Duncan Grant. Photo / Sarah Ivey

POZNAN, Poland - Defending lightweight single sculls champion Duncan Grant and the men's lightweight double of Storm Uru and Peter Taylor became the latest New Zealand crews to win through to major finals at the rowing world championship in Poznan, Poland overnight.

Grant struggled to third in his semi-final while contrastingly, Uru and Taylor underlined their title credentials by cruising to victory.

The two crews joined single scullers Mahe Drysdale and Emma Twigg, the men's and women's pairs, men's double and adaptive rower Robin Tinga race in medals races, which begin tonight.

Grant, a two time winner of the lightweight single, was unable to keep pace with impressive Greek rower Vasileios Polymeros in their semi-final.

Polymeros powered away to a comfortable victory in seven minutes 23.12secs, just less than four seconds clear of Grant, whose misery was further compounded when Japan's Daisaku Takeda rolled over the top of the kiwi in the last 100m to claim second.

"It wasn't a great row", Grant said.

"I got left behind at the start and with racing at this level, if you get left behind at the start, it's pretty hard working your way through the field.

"It would've been nice to have been second but I'll put that race behind me as an average one and focus on the final."

Grant said the four day wait between his heat and semi is difficult but he could now focus on the final and trying to win a third successive title.

"I have always had a bit of an average semi-final but as long as you get through to the final, that's the main goal," he said.

"I'll definitely make sure I'm firing on all cylinders for the final."

Uru and Taylor led their semi-final from start to finish, advancing to a date with redemption after the disappointment of failing to make the A final at last year's Olympics.

"We're both pretty happy," Taylor said.

"We're a pretty fancied crew to bring home a medal and we have high expectations of ourselves."

The New Zealand duo were locked in a close tussle with Germany's Christian Hochbruck and Lars Hartig and held a slim 0.3secs lead at the 500m mark.

The gap was extended to just under a second at the halfway stage as Great Britain's Rob Williams and Paul Mattek moved to within a boat length.

However, Uru and Taylor remained undeterred as they repelled both challenges in the second half of the race to cross the line ahead of the fast finishing Germans.

Their time was almost seven seconds slower than the winners of the first heat, Italy, but with a favourable lane for the final, they are in the prime position to win a medal on Sunday.

"There is more hunger there now because it (winning a medal) is more achievable," Taylor said.

"It's not a pipe dream. It's there and we believe we can do it."

Six New Zealand crews are involved in medal races tonight with adaptive rower Robin Tinga first up with Mahe Drysdale chasing a fourth successive world tile to follow.

- NZPA