time now to look at the pairs events.

LM2-

8 crews

Brazil, Great Britain, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Russia, USA

The Irish have been pretty much untouchable so far this season, Mark O’Donovan and Shane O’Driscoll from Skibbereen are unbeaten so far winning all three world Cups and the European Championships. They will be odds on favourites to make it a clean sweep for the season. 2017 has certainly seen a step up in performance from this Irish pairing, the gold in Belgrade was the first medal either man had won in their senior international careers and to follow that up with three more shows they are now the class crew of the field.

If the Irish have made a step up in performance then it can be argued that the British have taken a step backward. Sam Scrimgeour and Joel Cassells were world Champions in 2015 and European Champions in 2016. However they “only” managed a bronze medal at the 2016 world Championships and so far this season have a bronze from Belgrade and a silver in Poznan. Despite a strong first 1000m in Lucerne (where they led by over 1 second) they faded in the 2nd half and were rowed out of the medal altogether. But, they are a class outfit, and if they can get their pacing right they could well challenge for a medal and possibly even overturn the Irish.

The strongest challenge to the Irish however is likely to come from the Russians, Nikita Bolozin and Aleksei Kiiashko. After a fairly unspectacular 2016, where Kiiashko finished 10th in the LM2- and Bolozin 16th in the U23 BLM2X, they’ve stepped up a gear in 2017 and have created a fast pair. They’ve been runners-up to the Irish at Belgrade, the Europeans and in Lucerne and will be pushing to close the 1.5-2 second gap the Irish have been able to maintain over them so far this season.

Brazil are another combination who have made a step change in performance so far this season. Xavier Vela Maggi (who switched nationality from Spain to Brazil in 2016) and Willian Giaretton raced in the LM2X at their home Olympics placing 14th. They then returned to the LM2- to race at the World Championships finishing 9th. But, so far this season they’ve shown good medal-contending speed taking bronze at both the 2nd and 3rd World Cups (albeit in what was only a 3 boat final in Poznan).

The Italians are always strong in lightweight rowing and this year they have an exciting young combination of Guieseppe Di Mare and Alfonso Scalzone. 20 year old Di Mare and 21 year old Scalzone raced together for the first time at the European Championships where they picked up a bronze medal and ended the season as U23 World Champions.

The USA have selected Jack Devlin from Potomac Boat Club and Alex Twist from Seattle. Both were members of the LM8 that won bronze in 2015. For Devlin it’s a case of “joining the family business” after with both parents having rowed or trialled for the US.

The final two crews to mention are the Hungarians, Roland Szigeti and David Forrai, who have a best performance so far this season of 4th in Belgrade, and a crew from Mexico (Edmundo Reynoso and Angy Canul) who both make their international debuts in Sarasota.

My picks….logic dictates that the Irish will finish the season unbeaten but I reckon the Brits will finally get it right and take the silver with the battle for bronze being won by the Russians.

M2+

8 crews

Australia, Spain, France, Great Britain, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Romania

As with the LM4- this could well be the last year that the M2+ is part of the World Championship programme. But what that does mean is that whoever wins in Sarasota will remain the reigning World Champions. Given its dwindling status the event is often used as a means of giving the reserves a chance to race.

The favourites for this year are the Italians. But, if they do win it won’t be a particularly popular victory. Vincenzo Abbagnale has been named in the crew and has just completed a 16 month suspension for doping violations (there was some confusion over his ban, a number of press reports said he was suspended until 19th October whereas the Italian federation said it was 19th July). Rowing is lucky in that there aren’t many cases of doping so those that do happen reflect badly on the sport as a whole. Abbagnale was World Champion in this event in 2013 and was part of the M8 that finished 6th in 2015. He’s joined by Jacapo Mancini and cox Riccardo Zoppini. Mancini raced in the M8 at the European Championships and then at the U23 World Championships.

The French are an interesting crew, Thibault Colard and Thomas Baroukh are unusual in that they are lightweights racing in what is considered the most brutal of heavyweight events. But they are a talented pair having been members of the LM4- that won a bronze medal in 2015 and again at the Rio Olympics. They raced as a M2- in Lucerne finishing 10th.

Great Britain also have a strong chance of a good medal in Sarasota. Newcastle University graduates and Leander Club members Tom Ford and Tim Clarke (coxed by Harry Brightmore from Oxford Brookes) both made their senior debuts this season and won silver in the M8 in their first race in Belgrade. For Lucerne they moved into the M2- and finished 8th.

Germany won the M2+ at the final World Cup in Lucerne but have made a change to their line up for Sarasota. Malte Grossmann is now joined by University of Washington graduate Finn Schroeder. Schroeder raced with Anton Braun in the M2- at Lucerne but struggled back in 14th.

Hungary are another country with a strong chance of taking the win, they are possibly the most experienced crew in the field. Adrian Juhasz and Bela Simin Jr have been racing together for a number of years. They finished 9th in the M2- at the Rio Olympics and so far this season have a 10th place from Belgrade and 9th from the European Championships, both in the M2-) For Sarasota they gain Andrea Vanda Kollath in the coxes seat.

Romania have a strong chance for a medal as well, Adrian Damii and Mihaita-Vasile Tiganescu have raced in a variety of different boat classes this season. Both were members of the M8 that finished 6th at the Europeans. Damii raced the M8 in Lucerne taking 4th and Tiganescu partnered Cosmin Pascari in the M2- that also finished 4th.

The final crews to mention are the Australians and Spanish. The Aussies, Darcy Wruck and Angus Widdicombe (and cox James Rook) are the spares for the men’s team and raced in the M8 in Poznan finishing 4th and then the M4- in Lucerne. Spain (Jamie Lara Pacheco, Marco Sardelli Gil and Jurado Diaz) have a bronze medal from Lucerne (albeit from a 3 boat final). Both were members of the M8 that missed qualification for the Olympics when they came 5th at the Final Qualifying Regatta.

My picks….I think it’ll be between the Italians and Romanians for the gold with the British taking the bronze.

W2-

12 crews

China, Denmark, Spain, Great Britain, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Romania, Serbia, USA

With the departure of the dominant British pair of Helen Glover and Heather Stanning from this event, the battle to take over their mantle looks to have been won by New Zealand. Grace Prendergast and Kerri Gowler have been rowing together for a number of years, placing 7th in the W8 in 2013 and then becoming World Champions in the W4- in 2014. They formed their pairs partnership in 2015 where they finished runners-up to the British (and doubled up in the W8 to take another silver). In Rio they stayed in the W8 but just missed out on the medals. For 2017 they are concentrating on the W2- and have, so far, completely dominated the event winning in both Poznan and Lucerne by over 5 seconds. They also won the inaugural W2- event at Henley. It’ll take something very special to deny the Kiwis their first W2- title since 2011.

The main threat to the kiwis will come from the highly experienced Americans, Megan Kalmoe and Tracy Eisser. They were runners-up to the New Zealanders at both the 2nd and 3rd World Cups. Both have been mostly racing in the quad over the past few years and finished 5th in Rio. They were both in the crew that won an historic gold at the world Championships in 2015 and Kalmoe has a bronze medal in the quad from the 2012 Games. Now back in their preferred pair’s boat they aill be among the favourites for a medal.

Romania have a long tradition in this boat class and this year’s pairing look set to continue that strong history. Madalina Beres and Laura Oprea are doubling up in the W8 (a common occurrence for the Romanians). They were bronze medallists in the W8 and so far this season have golds in both W8 and W2- from the Europeans and were part of the W8 that won in Lucerne.

It looks highly likely that the medals will be decided between these three crews. However the Danes may look to break into the medal party. Hedvig Rasmussen and Christina Johansen were silver medallists at the Europeans and took bronze in Lucerne. Rasmussen is no stranger to this event having finished 4th in 2015 and then taking the bronze in Rio with partner Anne Andersen. Her new partner for 2017, Johansen is less experienced, having raced in the W4X during the 2014 season, but they look to be developing nicely as a pair and will be pushing for a medal.

Taking over from a pair that was as successful as Glover and Stanning is never going to be easy and the pair tasked with that challenge is Holly Hill and Melissa Wilson. This is very much a crew for the future and both have won medals at U23 level. The worlds will be their first race in the pair having been in the W4- in Lucerne that finished 6th. An A-final placing would be a great start to their pair’s project.

Another crew looking to reach the A-Final as a minimum in Sarasota are the Spanish. Anna Boada Peiro and Aina Cid I having been racing together as a pair since the U23 world Championships in 2014. They won a bronze medal at the Varese World Cup in 2016 and then qualified for the Rio Olympics by winning the Final Qualifying Regatta. They had a great regatta in Rio reaching the A-Final. They’ve not raced since the Olympic final so it remains to be seen whether they have the pace to make the final again.

Also watch out for the Chinese, with Rio Olympian Tian Miao joined by U23 international Mingwei Zhao and also the young Italian crew of Ilaria Broggini and Veronica Calabrese (4th at the Europeans).

My picks…yet another win for the dominant Kiwis with the Romanians pipping the Americans for the silver.

M2-

19 crews

Argentina, Belarus, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Spain, France, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Romania, South Africa, Serbia, Turkey, USA.

Now that the “World’s Best Crew” have hung-up their oars (and in the case of Hamish Bond, got on his bike) there was a scramble at the start of the new season to see who would emerge as their successors. All eyes were on the Sinkovic brothers from Croatia, dominant in the M2X and now trying their hands at single oared racing. But, injury ruled them out until the Lucerne World Cup. Lucerne also saw the first appearance of the season of the new Kiwi Pair of Thomas Murray and former lightweight James Hunter. Word was the Kiwi pair were very, very quick and so it turned out. The results show that the New Zealanders led at every marker but the reality was that it was a real scrap for the line. The Sinkovic’s mounted a huge final sprint and looked set to overhaul the New Zealanders before a slight wash out in the final 50 metres cost robbed spectators of a potential photo-finish. Now, with 2 more months of training under their belts the next showdown between the Kiwis and Croatians could well be the most eagerly anticipated races of the whole championships.

But, this isn’t just about the Croatians and Kiwis. The Italians have a very strong boat for Sarasota. Matteo Lodo and Giuseppe Vicino were both members of the World Championship winning M4- in 2015 and Olympic bronze medallists at the Rio Olympics. They’ve only raced once so far this season but that was a gold medal at the European Championships. They may not be able to match the Croatians and New Zealanders, but they will be strong favourites for the bronze.

Also challenging for the medals are the French Onfroy brothers, Theophile and Valentin. Like the Italians they raced in the M4- at the Rio Olympics finishing 11th. For 2017 they’ve moved into the pair and have, so far, had a very successful season. Silver medallists at the European Championships, they took gold in Poznan and then bronze in Lucerne.

Serbia’s Nenad Bedik and Milos Vasic are one of the most experienced pairings in the event. 10th in the M2- at the Rio Olympics, they have medalled every time they’ve raced so far this season with silver in Belgrade, bronze at the Europeans and silver behind the French in Poznan.

Another Olympic crew continuing into 2017 are the Czechs, Jakub Podrazil and Lukas Helsic. They won the B-Final in Rio and so far this season have medals at the European Championships and both the 1st and 2nd World Cups. Lucerne was a little disappointing when they only managed a 9th place. They will be looking for a solid A-Final finish in Florida.

Spain will be looking for a solid A-Final finish, Alexander Sigurbjonsson and Pau Vela Maggi finished 10th in 2015 and also raced at the Olympics. Their best performance so far this season was a 6th place at the Lucerne World Cup.

Also keep an eye out for the Dutch crew, Lex Van den Herik and Bo Wullings from Nereus. They raced in the M8 that won a spectacular gold medal in Belgrade. Herik finished the season as U23 World Champion as a member of the BM8.

My picks…I’m going to go for a win for the Croatians over the Kiwis with the Italians in bronze.