Medals for our Games hopefuls (From Warrington Guardian)

Medals for our Games hopefuls

12:45pm Thursday 10th May 2012 in Sport

WARRINGTON’S World Cup rowers have got Olympic year off to a medal-winning start.

Richard Egington achieved silver and Olivia Whitlam bronze in new-look boats as Great Britain finished clear winners overall in the first of this season’s three World Cup events.

Former Lymm High School pupil and current men’s four world champion Egington was recently moved out of the men’s four crew as part of a Team GB reshuffle and faced world champions Germany in Belgrade in what was his first competitive race in the eight since winning silver at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

GB had the edge until halfway but the Germans, unaccustomed to being led in any race, delivered over the second part of the course.

Egington, aged 33, who started his career with Warrington Rowing Club, said: “We did a pretty good job considering we had to make a change to the crew a couple of days earlier.

“It was a big change and we only had a short time to get it together and it showed up the longer the race went on.

“It’s early days for me in the eight. I haven’t rowed in an eight for a long time and I feel that I’m still finding my feet. But it was an encouraging start.”

Daresbury’s Whitlam and the women’s eight – without the injured Lou Reeve and Polly Swann – were pipped by Romania in the closing stages of their race and had to settle for bronze.

The 26-year-old Agecroft Rowing Club member said: “We had the speed at the start but we got rowed through which was disappointing.

“It’s a new crew and I think we have the engine in the boat but the skills aren’t as sharp as they need to be yet.”

The next World Cup takes place in Lucerne, Switzerland, from May 24 to 26.