New Zealand rowers won two medals at the Rowing World Cup regatta in Spain on finals day. Ben Taylor and Oli Welch won gold in the men’s pair, while Alana Sherman, Isla Blake, Kate Haines and Ella Cossill won bronze in the women’s coxless four.
Taylor and Welch began their race strongly and were already leading Romania by 1.63 seconds halfway through. They increased their lead by the 1500 metre mark and finished almost three seconds ahead of Romania. Their winning time was 6 minutes 26.86 seconds.
Taylor said the pair had found the last two weeks difficult because their rowing rhythm had not felt quite right. He said they worked on keeping their rowing and mindset simple, which helped bring them together. Their strong performance showed they were able to return to their best form when it mattered.
New Zealand’s bronze medal was also special for Haines and Cossill, as it was their first World Cup medal. Haines said she had waited almost seven years for the moment and wanted to enjoy it with her team-mates. Other New Zealand crews also competed in finals, with the men’s four and women’s quad both finishing sixth, before the squad travelled to Italy for training ahead of the next World Cup in Bulgaria.
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