Rowing: Grainger pins Olympic hopes on single scull

Published on Wednesday 29 April 2009 21:55

TRIPLE Olympic silver medallist Katherine Grainger will begin her quest for gold at London 2012 in the single scull after Great Britain announced the crew nominations for the first World Cup regatta of the season.

Grainger only decided to commit to the new Olympiad in December after finally overcoming the disappointment of finishing runner-up as part of the British women's quad in Beijing.

Olympic champions Andy Triggs Hodge and Peter Reed have reverted to the men's pair after winning gold in the men's four last summer. Hodge and Reed have won four national titles together in the pair and will aim to take that success onto the international stage, starting at Banyoles, Spain in late May.

Zac Purchase, who won Olympic gold in the lightweight double scull with Mark Hunter, will start his season in the single as he recovers from illness.

Paul Mattick, world champion in 2007 with the lightweight four, and Olympic reserve Rob Williams will form a new-look lightweight men's double.

Grainger, 33, only returned to training in January but won the national trials by seven seconds from her nearest rival and decided to take up the challenge of a new discipline after winning two Olympic silver medals and a three world titles in the quad. The Scot is likely to return to a bigger boat in time for London 2012 but she said: "The single will be a huge challenge but I am excited about trying something different for now and testing myself in different ways."

Hodge and Reed have reverted to the pair, with Beijing crewmates Steve Williams and Tom James both taking time out from the sport. "The last four years have been a great education. I learned so much about racing but we have more to learn and I am looking forward to exploring the new arena of pairs rowing with Pete," said Hodge. "It's an exciting time and I am focused on seeing how fast this pair can be."

Williams is yet to decide whether he will continue to London 2012 while the likes of Hunter, Frances Houghton and Debbie Flood have all taken time out of the sport.

Great Britain Rowing performance director David Tanner: "We have an interesting season ahead.

"It will be one of rebuilding, one in which we will try new things, giving the chance for our best Olympians to find new challenges and for newcomers to make their mark at the start of the new Olympiad."

The first of three World Cup regattas is in Banyoles followed by Munich in June and Lucerne in July with the world championships in Poznan between 23-30 August.