It’s bronze for Wilde! NZ Herald's Focus Sport Cheree Kinnear wraps our first medal for Tokyo 2020 plus all the news from day three as the Black Sticks and our surfers impress, while Emma Twigg opens up about her quest for Olympic gold. Video / NZ Herald
New Zealand's heavyweight rowing contingent endured a mixed day of racing at the Toyko Olympics, with three boats bowing out of medal contention and two female crews leading the way to progress.
First, the good news.
Emma Twigg underlined her medal credentials – and enhanced her case for gold – by powering into the women's single sculls semifinals at Sea Forest Waterway.
Repeating her efforts in the heat, Twigg obliterated the field and despite cruising the last 500 metres still finished 7.14 seconds faster than Switzerland's second-placed Jeannine Gmelin in a time of 7.54.96 - the second fastest overall from the quarterfinals.
Iran's Nazanin Malaei caused something of a surprise by pushing into third to qualify for the semis.
Emma Twigg competes during the women's single sculls quarterfinal. Photo / Getty Images
Attending her fourth Games, Twigg continues to look poised, in complete control to this point, in her quest for an elusive Olympic medal following two previous fourth-place finishes.
At London 2012 she missed bronze by 3.6 seconds, and in Rio de Janeiro four years later the margin was an agonising 0.3 seconds.
This time around, the 34-year-old appears destined to challenge for gold.
New Zealand's golden run in the men's single sculls, however, came to an abrupt end as Jordan Parry dropped out of medal contention in his quarterfinal.
Parry, having beaten two-time Olympic champion Mahe Drysdale to the boat, finished fourth in his quarterfinal almost six seconds behind German winner Oliver Zeidler.
The Tauranga 25-year-old, making his Olympic debut and competing in his first international event as a single sculler due to the Covid-19 pandemic, needed to finish in the top three to progress but after a slow start, he could not reel in Lithuania's Mindaugas Griškonis in third.
Parry's time of 7.18.48 would have been enough to progress from the other quarterfinals but he is now left to compete in the C/D semifinal.
The result closes New Zealand's illustrious chapter in the men's single sculls, with three golds in 2000, 2012 and 2016 - and Drysdale's Beijing bronze - typifying recent success.
Jordan Parry failed to qualify for the final in the men's single sculls. Photo / Getty Images
Women's double sculls Brooke Donoghue and Hannah Osborne followed their strong first-up display in winning their heat to become the first New Zealand boat to book their spot in a final.
Donoghue and Osborne were second in their semifinal, beaten by impressive young Romanian crew Ancuta Bodnar and Simona Radis, who will be favoured for gold after holding off the Kiwis by 4.74 seconds.
The Netherlands won the second semifinal, with Donoghue and Osborne recording the third-fastest time of the two semis.
Men's double scullers, Chris Harris, and Jack Lopas, could not replicate the women's efforts as they finished fourth in their semifinal - 1.58 seconds behind the third-placed Polish crew.
The New Zealand women's quad sculls were the first boat eliminated from medal contention after finishing third in their repechage event.
Olivia Loe, Eve Macfarlane, Georgia Nugent-O'Leary, and Ruby Tew finished fourth in their heat on Friday - seven seconds behind winners Germany - and therefore needed a top-two placing to progress from Sunday's repechage.
While they dug in the New Zealand boat was always off the pace – 1.49 seconds back at the halfway point before finishing over three seconds behind race winners Australia.
New Zealand managed to haul in Great Britain over the closing stages into third but were still well adrift the second-placed Italians, who also progress.
The women's quad sculls failed to make the final. Photo / Getty Images
The result - in an event contested at the Games for the first time since 1992 - is particularly brutal for Loe, the two-time double scull world champion, after being replaced in the double boat favoured to medal and moved into the quad.
The quad sculls will race again in the B Final, where there are no medals on the line.
