Olympic berths the target

ROWING:The diversity in the sport of rowing is highlighted this weekend, with a huge international event sharing space with the domestic showpiece for those who campaign in fixed-seat boats.

The World Championships, the highlight of the year for elite athletes, begins on Sunday in Munich, with over 1,200 rowers from 68 nations lining up to compete over eight days for medals - and to book a place for boats at next year's Olympic Games.

Back in Ireland, the AIB Coastal Rowing Championships will draw 1,800 competitors and sizeable crowds to Union Hall in Cork tomorrow and on Sunday, which is finals day.

Coastal rowers do not use the sliding seat which is the standard for Olympic events, but the sport has been booming since the adoption of the one-design boat, which allowed clubs from different areas of the country to compete on an equal footing.

The future of a sister discipline will be of little concern to the 13 athletes competing in Munich. There is a Sunday start for the men's four, along with heavyweight single sculler Seán Jacob and lightweight scullers Orlagh Duddy and Liam Molloy. The A and B finals for these disciplines will take place the following Saturday.

The lightweight men's four and women's lightweight double have their heats on Monday, with finals on Sunday, September 2nd.

The distinctive venue, with its cavernous stand and boathouse placed at the finish of the course, staged the rowing events at the 1972 Olympics, and 35 years later competitors will be keenly aware that this event is far and away the best chance to qualify their boat for Beijing next year.

Last year at Eton our vaunted lightweight four were beaten in their first race by outsiders China - discovering the hard way that World Cup form can sometimes count for little at the World Championships.

This year the lightweight four, with Cathal Moynihan in for Gearóid Towey, and the lightweight women's double, will hope the shoe is on the other foot. They must put poor form behind them and shine when it matters: to book a place for Beijing the men must finish 11th or better, the women eighth or better. It is not beyond either crew.