Tauranga rower wins gold at world champs

New Zealand's Adam Ling celebrates after winning the Men's lightweight single sculls during the World rowing championships in Aiguebelette, French Alps. AP Photo/Laurent Cipria

Tauranga Rowing Club's Adam Ling was one of two New Zealanders to win gold medals on a triumphant opening day of finals at the rowing world championships in Aiguebelette, France.

Ling produced a perfectly paced race from lane one in the non-Olympic lightweight single sculls to overcome challengers from Serbia and Slovenia.

The 23-year-old worked his way through the field from fourth in the first 500m. A flurry of oars in the final 200m saw him cross 0.79s in front. The 23-year-old's rise is extraordinary, considering he finished 13th to win the 'C' final at the Varese World Cup in June.

Zoe McBride replicated Ling's success with a dominant showing in the women's equivalent event. The 19-year-old, who set a world best time in June, coasted away from her closest British and American opponents to win by 1.54s. Someone producing that sort of form would normally ease into an Olympic-class crew but she faces the challenge of ousting either Julia Edward or Sophie MacKenzie, the incumbent world champions, who are favourites to replicate their 2014 achievement tonight.

Two other Tauranga Rowing Club members Zoe Stevenson and Curtis Rapley also had memorable days qualifying for tonight's finals.

Stevenson and Eve Macfarlane took out the women's double, beating Lithuania by 1.13s with a further 0.63s back to Britain, and easily booked a spot at next year's Rio Olympics.

The men's lightweight four of Rapley, James Lassche, Alistair Bond and James Hunter also qualified for the finals and for next year's Olympics.

Former Tauranga resident Mahe Drysdale won and remains on course to complete a record sixth world single sculls title. He is level with German Peter-Michael Kolbe who won five between 1975 and 1986.

Elsewhere, New Zealand will contest 10 out of 14 Olympic-class finals over the next two days and could equal their London effort by qualifying 11 boats for the Rio Games, if the men's quadruple sculls get second or better in their 'B' final and the eights finish in the top five.

They will have the option of qualifying three more - the women's single sculls, men's lightweight double sculls and men's coxless four - at regattas of death in Brandenburg and Lucerne next May.

Thrilling racing pervaded the semi-finals with each of four New Zealand crews finishing third or better to make their respective finals.

Details at: rowingnz.kiwi