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Racing Begins Sunday at 2012 Final Olympic Qualification Regatta

May 19, 2012

LUZERN, Switzerland – The pressure is on for six U.S. crews that have one final opportunity this week to qualify for the 2012 Olympic Games in London. A total of 377 athletes from 50 countries are scheduled to compete May 20-23 in Lucerne, Switzerland at the 2012 Final Olympic Qualification Regatta.

The women’s double sculls crew of Margot Shumway (Westlake, Ohio) and Sarah Trowbridge (Guilford, Conn.) will be the first U.S. boat to take to the water tomorrow, racing Spain, Finland and Denmark in the second heat. The top two crews will advance to the final, with the remaining two to the repechage, or second-chance race.

Shumway finished fifth in the women’s quadruple sculls at the 2008 Olympic Games and won the women’s single sculls at the 2011 Pan American Games. Trowbridge finished ninth in the double at the 2011 World Rowing Championships. With a total of nine crews in competition at this regatta, Shumway and Trowbridge will need to secure a top two finish in order to qualify for London.

Next up for the U.S., Sam Stitt (McLean Va.) and Warren Anderson (Paso Robles, Calif.) will race China, Italy, Slovakia and Georgia in the first heat of the men’s double sculls. The top three crews will advance to the semifinals, with the rest to the repechage.

If the U.S. boat finishes in the top two overall, the athletes will represent the U.S. in London. Stitt finished fifth at the 2008 Olympic Games in the men’s quadruple sculls. Anderson, a Beijing alternate, finished second in the single at NSR I and won the double with Stitt at NSR II.

In the women’s single sculls, Gevvie Stone (Newton, Mass.) will race in the second of three heats. She is up against France’s 2008 Olympic single sculler Sophie Balmary, Australia, Cypress and Poland, with the top two in Sunday’s race headed to the semifinals. Stone finished 11th at the world championships on Lake Bled last summer and will be looking to finish in the top four in order to qualify for London.

The lightweight men’s double sculls duo of Andrew Campbell (New Canaan, Conn.) and Will Daly (Vail, Colo.) is set to race in the third heat with Czech Republic, Switzerland and Spain. The top three boats in each heat will advance to the semifinals.

Campbell, who was awarded the 2011 USRowing Man of the Year Award, finished fourth in the lightweight single at the 2011 World Rowing Championships and took bronze in the event in the 2011 World Rowing Under 23 Championships. Daly, a seven-time national team member and Beijing Olympian, was in the lightweight four that finished 13th on Lake Bled last summer. The U.S. crew will need to place in the top two in order to qualify for London.

Representing the U.S. in the lightweight men’s four is Robin Prendes (Miami, Fla.), Nick LaCava (Weston, Conn.), Will Newell (Weston, Mass.) and Anthony Fahden (Lafayette, Calif.). The U.S. will take on Russia, The Netherlands, Brazil, China and Argentina in the first of two heats – with the winner advancing directly to the final.

Prendes and Fahden return from the boat that finished 13th at the 2011 World Rowing Championships. LaCava and Newell won the lightweight men’s pair event at the first National Selection Regatta and were members of the lightweight eight that finished fifth in Bled. The crew will need to place in the top two to qualify for London.

The last race on Sunday will be a race for lanes in the men’s eight event. France, New Zealand and the U.S. will line up, in that order, for placement in Tuesday’s final.

Coxswain Zach Vlahos (Piedmont, Calif.), Grant James (DeKalb, Ill.), David Banks (Potomac, Md.), Steve Kasprzyk (Cinnaminson, N.J.), Jake Cornelius (Brooktondale, N.Y.), Brett Newlin (Riverton, Wyo.), Ross James (DeKalb, Ill.), Will Miller (Duxbury, Mass.) and Giuseppe Lanzone (Annandale, Va.) will represent the U.S. The winning eight in Lucerne will secure a spot in the 2012 Olympic Games.

The James brothers return to the boat from last year’s world championship lineup, while Kasprzyk joins the lineup from the men’s eight that won gold at the 2011 Pan American Games. Banks, Newlin and Lanzone were members of the men’s four that finished ninth at the 2008 Olympic Games.

For a complete schedule and live results tracker, visit www.worldrowing.com.

Schedule for Sunday, May 20, 2012

• Women’s Double Sculls (W2x), 15:35 local time, heat 2, lane 3
• Men’s Double Sculls (M2x), 15:42 local time, heat 1, lane 3
• Women’s Single Sculls (W1x), 16:24 local time, heat 2, lane 4
• Lightweight Men’s Double Sculls (LM2x), 17:34 local time, heat 3, lane 1
• Lightweight Men’s Four (LM4-), 17:41 local time, heat 1, lane 1
• Men’s Eight (M8+), 18:23 local time, race for lanes, lane 3

About USRowing
USRowing is a nonprofit organization recognized by the United States Olympic Committee as the governing body for the sport of rowing in the United States. USRowing’s official suppliers include Boathouse Sports, Vespoli, WinTech, Filippi, Croker Oars, Rudy Project, Concept2, Nielsen Kellerman, PowerHTV and Ludus Tours. USRowing also receives generous support from the National Rowing Foundation and its corporate sponsors and partners ANXeBusiness Corp, Voxer, EZ Dock, EMCVenues, The Perfect SNAQUE and INDi. For more information, visit www.usrowing.org. USRowing has created The Row to London to engage sponsors leading up to the 2012 Olympic Games, with proceeds going to help ensure the U.S. team’s success. Opportunities also exist to partner with America Rows – supporting diversity initiatives and adaptive programs. For more information, please contact Beth Kohl at beth@usrowing.org.

Allison Frederick

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