Offaly's Padraig Hussey finished third in his single sculls repechage at the World Championships in Lucerne yesterday, missing out on a chance to go into the A or B semi-finals in this extremely difficult event.

Hussey, who won silver at the Nations Cup, the world under-23 championships, earlier this year, will now compete in the B/C semi-finals tomorrow.

The student at University of California, Berkeley, only turned 21 this year and a placing in the C final, which would put him in the top 18 in the world at senior level, would be satisfactory.

Interestingly, Matthew Wells (22), one of the main young British hopes, also finished third in his single sculls repechage yesterday and moves on to the same stage as Hussey.

Ireland's other silver medallists at the Nations Cup in Ottensheim in Austria, the lightweight four, go in their repechage today.

SinΘad Jennings, who competes in the lightweight single sculls final on Saturday, learned yesterday that world champion Laila Finska-Bezerra has pulled out of the event due to medical problems, believed to be a chest infection.

The Finn, who has been one of Jennings' main rivals over the last two seasons, was due to compete in a repechage yesterday.

In an unconnected development, the governing body of rowing, FISA, has made a point at these championships of stressing their strong anti-drug policy. Unannounced testing for EPO (erythropoeitin) was conducted during the period just before the start of the championships.

Every athlete accredited for the championships must comply with the FISA anti-doping rules which authorise blood testing as well as urine testing.

In addition, each participant has signed a commitment form consenting to submit to all methods of testing (including blood and urine sample taking) that could reveal the presence or possible presence of prohibited substances.

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (Lucerne) - (Irish interest): Men's Single Sculls: Repechage - 3 Ireland (P Hussey) 7:09:73