Britain’s Katherine Grainger finally became an Olympic champion, while New Zealand took two titles at the London Olympics rowing regatta yesterday.
Grainger, with Anna Watkins, sent the capacity partisan crowd wild when claiming gold in the women’s double sculls.
The 36-year-old Glaswegian was climbing to the top of the podium for the first time after three Olympic silver medals in her long and distinguished career.
Photo: AFP
The British duo, the reigning world champions, were the crew to beat after setting a new Olympic record in the semi-finals earlier in the week and so it proved as they held off Australia to extend their unbeaten run to 23 races.
Poland finished well off the pace to take bronze.
Grainger, who has taken a sabbatical from studying for a doctorate in homicide to achieve her sporting dream, was immediately enveloped in a bearhug by Steve Redgrave, Britain’s five-time Olympic rowing gold medalist, after stepping out of the boat.
“We knew we had all the goods to perform, so it’s job well done,” Grainger said after regaining her breath.
“Of all my medals, this is really one for the people,” she added. “This is for everyone who has helped me and supported me along the way, from my family, through school, and so on.”
Watkins added: “I had to ask Katherine if it was all a dream, I can’t believe it.”
British women were experiencing a case of the proverbial London bus syndrome — you wait an age for one to come along and them two turn up at once — as the win came just 48 hours after Heather Stanning and Helen Glover had supplied the host nation with their first ever women’s Olympic rowing gold.
It was also a memorable day on the water at Eton Dorney for New Zealand.
Kiwis Eric Murray and Hamish Bond lived up to their status as hot favorites to claim gold in the men’s pair, with France narrowly prevailing over Britain in a scramble for silver.
That was followed up by New Zealand’s Mahe Drysdale winning gold in the men’s single sculls.
Drysdale, ill when taking bronze at the Beijing Games four years ago, was followed across the line by Ondrej Synek of the Czech Republic, with Britain’s Alan Campbell in third.
Taiwan’s Wang Ming-hui was second in final E to finish 26th out of 33 participants.
In the day’s other final, Germany led from start to finish in the men’s quadruple sculls.
Croatia, champions in Beijing in 2008, took silver, a boat length adrift, with Australia filling the bronze medal position.
The German crew comprised Karl Schulze, Philipp Wende, Lauritz Schoof and Tim Grohmann.
The runners-up at last year’s world championships claimed Germany’s second rowing title at the Games after their men’s eights struck gold on Wednesday.
Schulze and his teammates powered clear from the first stroke, with Croatia, favorites after posting the fastest time in the semi-finals, never mounting a serious threat.
Additional reporting by Staff writer
Shohei Ohtani and his wife arrived in South Korea with his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates yesterday ahead of their season-opening games with the San Diego Padres next week. Ohtani, wearing a black training suit and a cap backwards, was the first Dodgers player who showed up at the arrival gate of Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul. His wife, Mamiko Tanaka, walked several steps behind him. As a crowd of fans, many wearing Dodgers jerseys, shouted his name and cheered slogans, Ohtani briefly waved his hand, but did not say anything before he entered a limousine bus with his wife. Fans held placards
Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals at the All England Open, beating Kim Ga-eun of South Korea 21-17, 21-15. With the win, Tai earned a semi-final against China’s He Bingjiao, who beat Michelle Li of Canada 21-9, 21-9. Defending champion An Se-young defeated India’s P.V. Sindhu 21-19, 21-11. An on Wednesday cruised into the second round, unlike last year’s men’s winner, Li Shifeng, who suffered a shock defeat. South Korea’s An, the world No. 1, overcame Taiwan’s Hsu Wen-chi 21-17, 21-16 to set up the match against Sindhu. In other women’s singles matches, Taiwan’s Sung Shuo-yun lost 21-18, 24-22 against Carolina Marin of
EYEING TOP SPOT: A victory in today’s final against Storm Hunter and Katerina Siniakova would return 38-year-old Hsieh Su-wei to the world No. 1 ranking Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens on Thursday secured a spot in the women’s doubles finals at the BNP Paribas Open after dispatching Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US and Australia’s Ellen Perez 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) at Indian Wells. Hsieh and her Belgian partner Mertens, who won the Australian Open in late January, coasted through the first set after breaking their opponents’ serve twice, but found the going tougher in the second. Both pairs could only muster one break point over 12 games, neither of which were converted, leaving the set to be decided by a tiebreaker. Hsieh and Mertens took a 6-3 lead,
DOUBLES PAYBACK: Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Martens avenged their defeat in the quarters at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open against Demi Schuurs and Luisa Stefani Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei on Wednesday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California. Hsieh and partner Elise Mertens of Belgium dispatched Demi Schuurs and Luisa Stefani 6-1, 6-4 to set up a clash against Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US and Australia’s Ellen Perez for a spot in the final of the WTA 1000 tournament. Hsieh and Martens made a blistering start to their rematch after they lost to Schuurs and Stefani in the quarter-finals at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open last month, winning three games without reply at the start of the first set