Team GB rowers win silver in men’s fours
Team GB rowers pick up silver in the men’s fours in a closely fought battle against South Africa and Denmark.
The men’s lightweight four final team comprises brothers Richard and Peter Chambers, Rob Williams and Chris Bartley. Their arch-rivals in the race were Denmark.
Denmark started quickly, pushing ahead of the rest of the field. At the halfway mark Team GB was in the bronze medal position, 1.8 seconds behind Denmark.
Then Team GB upped their work rate and closed on the Danish team. With 500m left Britain was one second behind the Danes. Australia also started pushing back.
In tight final stages South Africa managed to push into gold position, Team GB took silver and Denmark, who flagged over the last 25 strokes, slipped back into bronze.
Qualifying
Team GB qualified for the final by over-turning world champions Australia in the heats and then winning the semi-final with a powerful final dash to pull them clear of Switzerland.
The men’s lightweight four competition requires the four rowers to weigh less than a total of 44 stone. Three out of the four rowers in the team live in Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire, a hub for Team GB’s rowers.
During this year’s World Cup tour the Team GB lightweight four won silver medal, behind Denmark who took gold.
Bill Lucas and Sam Townsend, who competed in the men’s double sculls final before the lightweight fours, finished in fifth place. Women’s rowing eight finished in last place with the USA taking gold, Canada silver and Netherlands bronze.
The result follows a succesful day for Team GB rowing yesterday, when Helen Glover and Heather Stanning won Britain and Northern Ireland’s first gold medal, at the same time making history as the first British women to win Olympic gold in rowing. Bronze also followed for the men’s eight team in their final.
Team GB today
Other success for British rowing today came from Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter, Team GB’s male lightweight double sculls team, and Sophie Hosking and Katherine Copeland, the female lightweight double sculls team, who won their semi-finals.
Elsewhere Becky Adlington won her 800m freestyle to book her place in tomorrow night’s final and defend her Beijing medal. In judo, Team GB’s Gemma Gibbon’s (right) is through to the semi-finals after beating Mongolia’s Lkhamdegd Purevjargal.
Britain’s female fencers were knocked out of the competition by Italy in the team foil earlier today, despite having beaten Egypt earlier in the day.
