Displaying items by tag: SemiFinal

21st June 2019

Claire Feerick and Eimear Lambe Take Place in World Cup Semi-Final

#Rowing: Ireland’s women’s pair of Claire Feerick and Eimear Lambe qualified for the semi-final at the World Cup Regatta in Poznan, Poland. The young crew took a clear second place behind Megan Kalmoe and Tracey Eisser of the United States in their repechage. The USA One crew were clear winners, while Feerick and Lambe did well to win a battle with Canada One to claim the second – and final – qualifying spot.

World Cup Regatta, Poznan, Poland, Day One (Irish interest)

Women

Four

Heat One (First Three to A/B Semi-Finals; rest to Repechage): 1 Australia 6:32.50, 2 United States Two 6:33.57, 3 Britain 6:35.69; 4 Ireland (T Hanlon, M Dukarska, A Crowley, E Hegarty) 6:38.44.

Pair

Heat Two (Winner to A/B Semi-Final; rest to Repechages): 1 Italy Two 7:07.10; 2 China Two 7:09.55, 3 Ireland (E Lambe, C Feerick) 7:10.31. Repechage One (First Two to A/B Semi-Final; next two to C Final; rest to D Final): 1 United States One 7:15.35, 2 Ireland 7:19.33; 3 Canada One 7:26.52.

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14th September 2018

Puspure Wins Semi-Final to Take A Final Place at World Rowing Championships

#Rowing: Sanita Puspure won her semi-final and progressed confidently to the A Final of the single sculls at the World Rowing Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. While Fie-Udby Erichsen of Denmark staged an early challenge and led, Puspure swept through her as they approached the 1,000 metres. She then powered away and won with two lengths of clear water to spare.

Carling Zeeman was a good tip to join the two in the A Final, but caught a crab which momentarily stopped her boat. Annekatrin Thiele took the third and final qualifying spot.

Jeannine Gmelin of Switzerland won the second semi-final from Kara Kohler of the United States, with Magdalena Lobnig of Austria just squeezing out Madeleine Edmunds of Australia for the third A Final spot. Gmelin’s time was just .92 of a second off Pupure’s.

World Rowing Championships, Plovdiv, Bulgaria, Day Six (Irish interest)

Men

Double – Semi-Final One (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): Britain 6:06.59, 2 New Zealand 6:08.00, 3 Romania 6:08.17; 5 Ireland (P Doyle, R Byrne) 6:10.95.

Women

Eight – Repechage (First Four to A Final): 4 Britain (8 R Shorten) 6:04.63.

Single Sculls – A/B Semi-Final (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Ireland (S Puspure) 7:23.01, 2 Denmark (F-U Erichsen) 7:30.73, 3 Germany (A Thiele) 7:32.74.

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29th September 2017

Gutsy Performance Secures A Final For Puspure at World Rowing

#Rowing: Sanita Puspure secured an A Final spot at the World Rowing Championships today. The Old Collegians sculler took a close-up second in her semi-final of the single sculls. Puspure produced an intelligent, gutsy performance. In a tight contest she moved at halfway to secure a place in the top three; after the 1500 metres mark she charged again, and was just three-hundredths of a second behind Jeannine Gmelin of Switzerland, who qualified in first. Behind them, Magdalena Lobnig of Austria just ousted Felice Mueller of the US for third.

World Rowing Championships, Sarasota-Bradenton, Day Six – Irish interest:

Women

Single Sculls – Semi-Final Two (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Switzerland (J Gmelin) 7:26.90, 2 Ireland (S Puspure) 7:26.93, 3 Austria (M Lobnig) 7:27.79; United States (F Mueller) 7:27.89.

Semi-Final One: 1 Britain (V Thornley) 7:31.72, 2 Netherlands (L Scheenard) 7:34.09, 3 Canada (C Zeeman) 7:34.33.

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25th August 2016

O'Donovan and Lightweight Pair Race Into World Rowing Finals

#Rowing: Paul O'Donovan won his semi-final after another exciting tussle and the Ireland lightweight pair also qualified for their A Final at the World Rowing Championships in Rotterdam today.

Lightweight sculler O'Donovan put in a remarkable middle third of the race to move from sixth to second in very hot conditions . He then pushed for the lead, but Rajko Hrvat of Slovenia was a dogged opponent. The two raced to the line - O'Donovan won by just over half a second.

Mark O'Donovan and Shane O'Driscoll reached their A Final by taking second. They raced France for most of the 2,000 metres and were still in touch at the end.

World Rowing Championships, Rotterdam (Irish interest; selected results)

Men

Lightweight Pair A/B Semi-Final Two (Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 France 6:30.56, 2 Ireland (M O'Donovan, S O'Driscoll) 6:32.18, 3 United States 6:33.19; 4 Brazil 6:35.07, 5 Italy 6:37.34, 6 Spain 6:40.82.

Lightweight Single Sculls - A/B Semi-Final One (Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Ireland (P O'Donovan) 6:51.71, 2 Slovenia 6:52.31, 3 Germany 6:52.32; 4 Spain 6:53.21, 6 Italy 7:17.33.

Under-23 Quadruple Sculls - B Final (Places 7 to 12): 1 Russia 5:54.0; 6 Ireland (D Buckley, J Casey, P Boomer, S McKeown) 6:01.78.

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11th August 2016

O'Donovans Secure Second Olympic Rowing Final Place for Ireland

#Rowing: Paul and Gary O'Donovan lifted Ireland into a second Olympic final at Rio de Janeiro today. The men from Lisheen near Skibbereen finished third in their semi-final of the lightweight double sculls. France and the United States set the early pace, with Britain third and Ireland in fourth. The O'Donovans took a marginal lead over Britain at half way and then hunted down the leaders. France held on to take first ahead of the United States, who had just over a half a second over Ireland.

South Africa won the second semi-final, pushing Norway in to second. Poland won a battle for third with Italy. The winning time - six minutes 38.01 seconds - was over three seconds slower than that in Ireland's semi-final.

Olympic Games, Rio de Janeiro (Irish interest; selected results)

Men

Lightweight Double Sculls - Semi-Finals (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final)

Semi-Final One: 1 France 6:34.43, 2 United States 6:35.19, Ireland (G O'Donovan, P O'Donovan) 6:35.70; 4 Britain 6:38.76, 5 Germany 6:59.28, 6 China 7:01.49.

Semi-Final Two: 1 South Africa 6:38.010, 2 Norway 6:38.65, 3 Poland 6:40.23.

Women

Lightweight Double Sculls - Semi-Finals (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final)

Semi-Final One: 1 South Africa 7:19.09, 2 New Zealand 7:19.27, 3 China 7:20.94.

Semi-Final Two: 1 Netherlands 7:13.93, 2 Canada 7:16.35, 3 Ireland (C Lambe, S Lynch) 7:18.24; 4 Denmark 7:20.29, 5 United States 7:22.78, 6 Germany 7:33.21.

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23rd May 2016

Puspure Books Place in Olympic Qualification Final

#Rowing: Sanita Puspure has qualified for the final of the Olympic Qualification Regatta in Lucerne, Switzerland. The Ireland single sculler finished second in the semi-final behind Emma Twigg of New Zealand, with Elza Gulbe of Latvia taking the third qualification place. Twigg and Puspure were clear in the first and second places from early on, with Gulbe making third her own in the second half, well clear of the other three contenders, from Russia, Spain and Norway.

Denmark’s Fie-Udby Erichsen of Denmark won the second semi-final, with Ekaterina Karsten of Belarus and Nataliya Dovgodko of Ukraine taking the other final places.

The first four scullers in tomorrow’s final will book their places at the Olympic Games.

Olympic Qualification Regatta, Lucerne, Switzerland (Irish interest; selected results)

Women

Single Sculls – Semi-Finals (Three to A Final) – Semi-Final One: 1 New Zealand (E Twigg) 7:36.75, 2 Ireland (S Puspure) 7:40.46, 3 Latvia (E Gulbe) 7:46.69. Semi-Final Two: 1 Denmark (F Erichsen) 7:37.09, 2 Belarus (E Karsten) 7:41.89, 3 Ukraine (N Dovgodko) 7:42.18

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20th September 2015

Jegou's Penalty-Free Run Not Fast Enough To Secure Olympic Place

#Canoeing: Ireland C1 paddler Liam Jegou finished outside the top 10 nations at the canoe sprint World Championships in Lee Valley in England today and missed out on this chance of qualifying the boat for the Olympic Games. Jegou went off second in his semi-final and had a penalty-free run down the course, but his time of 106.29 seconds was not fast enough to stand in the top 10 nations. Jegou came in 27^th, ahead of Italy and Canada. Spain, Portugal and Australia also missed out.

Canoe Slalom World Championships, Lee Valley, London, Day Five (Irish interest)

Men

C1 – Semi-Finals (10 to Final): 27 L Jegou 106.29

K1 – Team Final: 19 Ireland 161.62

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27th August 2014

New Ireland Double Fight Way Into World Rowing Championships Semi-Final

#ROWING: Ireland’s new women’s double of Helen Hanningan (neé Walshe) and Monika Dukarska made a significant breakthrough at the World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam today, qualifying for the A/B Semi-Finals. The target was a place in the top two of their repechage. Romania made the early pace, with Ireland and the United States joining them in the challenge. By the closing stagest the US had their place sewn up, while Dukarska and Hannigan took out Romania to enter the top 12 crews at the Championships.

World Rowing Championships, Day Four (Selected Results; Irish interest)

Men

Lightweight Single Sculls – Quarter-Final (First Three to A/B Semi-Finals; rest to C/D Semi-Finals): 1 Germany (L Hartig) 7:13.67, 2 Ireland (P O’Donovan) 7:14.76, 3 Denmark (S Jensen) 7:33.91; 4 Azerbaijan 7:25.84, 5 Russia 7:33.91, 6 Algeria 7:43.76.

Women

Double Sculls – Repechage Three (First Two to A/B Semi-Final: rest to C/D Semi-Final): 1 United States (M O’Leary, E Tomek) 7:18.10, 2 Ireland (H Hannigan, M Dukarska) 7:21.14; 3 Romania 7:22.87, 4 Estonia 7:48.85.

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18th August 2014

Lambe Qualifies for Youth Olympic Rowing Semi-Final

#ROWING: Ireland’s Eimear Lambe qualified for the A/B semi-finals of the Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing in China this morning. The 17-year-old Dubliner, a sister of senior Ireland international Claire, took the second qualification spot behind Anna Thornton of Britain. Lambe is drawn to compete in the first semi-final at 3.40 am Irish time tomorrow (Tuesday) morning.

Youth Olympic Games, Nanjing, China (Irish interest, selected results)

Women

Junior Single Sculls – Repechage Two (First Two to A/B Semi-Finals): 1 Britain (A Thornton) 3:53.67, 2 E Lambe 3:55.00; 3 Denmark 3:57.54, 4 Japan 4:00.57, 5 Argentina 4:06.26.

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26th August 2013

Good Second Half Not Enough for Ireland Women's Double

#WorldRowingChampionships: Ireland’s double scull of Monika Dukarska and Leonora Kennedy took fourth in their heat at the World Rowing Championships in Chungju in Korea this morning and must compete in a repechage to secure a place in the A/B Semi-Finals.

A place in the top three was the target: Lithuania and Denmark were the clear one-two from half way, with Ukraine in third and Ireland and Russia trailing. Dukarska and Kennedy upped their rate in the second half of the race, engaging in a battle with Russia which they won. They overlapped Ukraine in the closing stages but could not head them.

World Rowing Championships, Day Two (Irish interest)

Women

Double Sculls – Heat One (First Three Directly to A/B Semi-Final; rest to Repechage): 1 Lithuania (D Vistartaite, M Valciukaite) 6:52.09, 2 Denmark (M Petersen, L Jakobsen) 6:56.34, 3 Ukraine (A Kravchenko, O Buryak) 7:02.42; 4 Ireland (M Dukarska, L Kennedy) 7:03.92, 5 Russia 7:09.73.

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About The Middle Sea Race

The Rolex Middle Sea Race is a highly rated offshore classic, often mentioned in the same breath as the Rolex Fastnet, The Rolex Sydney–Hobart and Newport-Bermuda as a 'must do' race. The Royal Malta Yacht Club and the Royal Ocean Racing Club co-founded the race in 1968 and 2007 was the 28th Edition. Save for a break between 1984 and 1995 the event has been run annually attracting 25–30 yachts. In recent years, the number of entries has rissen sharply to 68 boats thanks to a new Organising Committee who managed to bring Rolex on board as title sponsor for the Middle Sea Race.

The race is a true challenge to skippers and crews who have to be at their very best to cope with the often changeable and demanding conditions. Equally, the race is blessed with unsurpassed scenery with its course, taking competitors close to a number of islands, which form marks of the course. Ted Turner described the MSR as "the most beautiful race course in the world".

Apart from Turner, famous competitors have included Eric Tabarly, Cino Ricci, Herbert von Karajan, Jim Dolan, Sir Chay Blyth and Sir Francis Chichester (fresh from his round the world adventure). High profile boats from the world's top designers take part, most in pursuit of line honours and the record – competing yachts include the extreme Open 60s, Riviera di Rimini and Shining; the maxis, Mistress Quickly, Zephyrus IV and Sagamore; and the pocket rockets such as the 41-foot J-125 Strait Dealer and the DK46, Fidessa Fastwave.

In 2006, Mike Sanderson and Seb Josse on board ABN Amro, winner of the Volvo Ocean Race, the super Maxis; Alfa Romeo and Maximus and the 2006 Rolex Middle Sea Race overall winner, Hasso Platner on board his MaxZ86, Morning Glory.

George David on board Rambler (ex-Alfa Romeo) managed a new course record in 2007 and in 2008, Thierry Bouchard on Spirit of Ad Hoc won the Rolex Middle Sea Race on board a Beneteau 40.7

The largest number of entries was 78 established in 2008.

Middle Sea Race History

IN THE BEGINNING

The Middle Sea Race was conceived as the result of sporting rivalry between great friends, Paul and John Ripard and an Englishman residing in Malta called Jimmy White, all members of the Royal Malta Yacht Club. In the early fifties, it was mainly British servicemen stationed in Malta who competitively raced. Even the boats had a military connection, since they were old German training boats captured by the British during the war. At the time, the RMYC only had a few Maltese members, amongst who were Paul and John Ripard.

So it was in the early sixties that Paul and Jimmy, together with a mutual friend, Alan Green (later to become the Race Director of the Royal Ocean Racing Club), set out to map a course designed to offer an exciting race in different conditions to those prevailing in Maltese coastal waters. They also decided the course would be slightly longer than the RORC's longest race, the Fastnet. The resulting course is the same as used today.

Ted Turner, CEO of Turner Communications (CNN) has written that the Middle Sea Race "must be the most beautiful race course in the world. What other event has an active volcano as a mark of the course?"

In all of its editions since it was first run in 1968 – won by Paul Ripard's brother John, the Rolex Middle Sea Race has attracted many prestigious names in yachting. Some of these have gone on to greater things in life and have actually left their imprint on the world at large. Amongst these one finds the late Raul Gardini who won line honours in 1979 on Rumegal, and who spearheaded the 1992 Italian Challenge for the America's Cup with Moro di Venezia.

Another former line honours winner (1971) who has passed away since was Frenchman Eric Tabarly winner of round the world and transatlantic races on Penduik. Before his death, he was in Malta again for the novel Around Europe Open UAP Race involving monohulls, catamarans and trimarans. The guest list for the Middle Sea Race has included VIP's of the likes of Sir Francis Chichester, who in 1966 was the first man to sail around the world single-handedly, making only one stop.

The list of top yachting names includes many Italians. It is, after all a premier race around their largest island. These include Navy Admiral Tino Straulino, Olympic gold medallist in the star class and Cino Ricci, well known yachting TV commentator. And it is also an Italian who in 1999 finally beat the course record set by Mistress Quickly in 1978. Top racing skipper Andrea Scarabelli beat it so resoundingly, he knocked off over six hours from the time that had stood unbeaten for 20 years.

World famous round the world race winners with a Middle Sea Race connection include yachting journalist Sir Robin Knox-Johnston and Les Williams, both from the UK.

The Maxi Class has long had a long and loving relationship with the Middle Sea Race. Right from the early days personalities such as Germany's Herbert Von Karajan, famous orchestra conductor and artistic director of the Berliner Philarmoniker, competing with his maxi Helisara IV. Later came Marvin Greene Jr, CEO of Reeves Communications Corporation and owner of the well known Nirvana (line honours in 1982) and Jim Dolan, CEO of Cablevision, whose Sagamore was back in 1999 to try and emulate the line honours she won in 1997.

THE COURSE RECORD

The course record was held by the San Francisco based, Robert McNeil on board his Maxi Turbo Sled Zephyrus IV when in 2000, he smashed the Course record which now stands at 64 hrs 49 mins 57 secs. Zephyrus IV is a Rechiel-Pugh design. In recent years, various maxis such as Alfa Romeo, Nokia, Maximus and Morning Glory have all tried to break this course record, but the wind Gods have never played along. Even the VOR winner, ABN AMro tried, but all failed in 2006.

However, George David came along on board Rambler in 2007 and demolished the course record established by Zephyrus IV in 2000. This now stands at 1 day, 23 hours, 55 minutes and 3 seconds.

At A Glance - Middle Sea Race 2024

First held: 1968

Organising Authority: Royal Malta Yacht Club

Start

The 45th Rolex Middle Sea Race will start on Saturday, 19 October 2024.

Grand Harbour, Valletta: seven separate starts, at 10-minute intervals, from 11:00 CEST Saturday, 21 October 2024

Start Line: between the Saluting Battery, Upper Barrakka Gardens (Valletta) and Fort St Angelo (Birgu)

Various vantage points all around the Grand Harbour, high up on the bastions or at water level. Harbour access for spectator boats is restricted during the period of the start.

Course

Set in the heart of the Mediterranean and is considered one of the most beautiful in the world. It starts and finishes in Malta, passes two active volcanoes and takes in the deep azure waters surrounding Sicily, and the Aeolian and Egadi Islands, as well as lonelier outposts of Pantelleria and Lampedusa, both closer to the African continent than Europe.

Length: 606 nautical miles (1,122km)

Outright Race Record: 33h 29m 28s, Argo, United States, Jason Carroll

Monohull Race Record: 40h 17m 50s, Comanche, Cayman Is, Mitch Booth