Back to back golds
U.S. men repeat as men's eights champion; Romania takes women's
Posted: Sunday September 13, 1998 06:13 PM
COLOGNE, Germany (AP) -- The United States men's team
successfully defended its prestigious eights title at the World
Rowing Championships Sunday.
The American crew, which included five men from the gold
medal-winning team at last year's worlds, held off a strong German
team to win in 5 minutes, 38.78 seconds.
Germany, with almost a completely new crew, closed in on the
Americans in the final 500 meters, but wound up finishing .68
seconds back.
The victory marked the first time a men's team successfully
defended its title since West Germany won in 1989 and 1990. A
unified German team won the event in 1991. This was the first time
a U.S. men's eight team repeated as champion.
"Throughout the year, there was the fear that American men
can't repeat," said Christopher Aherens, the American stroke. "So
we used that as a focus. It kept us hungry and driving forward.
"Our last title was great, but we wanted to bring it to a
higher level."
Romania's women team also defended its eights crown, completing
the 2,000-meter course on the Fuehlinger See in 6:14.62.
The United States took silver, finishing 1.19 back.
Germany again was the overall winner, taking five gold and five
silver medals.
Italy had three golds, three silvers and three bronzes. Britain,
which also won three titles, also had a silver. The United States
finished with two golds, three silvers and four bronzes.
The Americans' second gold medal came as a surprise with a
victory in the lightweight double sculls.
Joining forces only six weeks ago, Americans Sarah Garner and
Christine Collins led most of the race, hardly challenged, and were
timed in 7:03.73. They finished 2.80 ahead of defending champion
Germany.
Garner, the lightweight single scull champion last year, and
Collins, a three-time world champion in other lightweight
disciplines, both switched to double sculls, the only women's
Olympic lightweight event, so they could compete in Sydney.
"I'm psyched and surprised by how it's going," said Garner,
who underwent shoulder surgery this year. "We hoped for top three,
but never dreamed we'd win."
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
| 
