British rowing champions given Rio warning

HI HO SILVER: Wanganui's Kerri Gowler teamed with Grace Prendergast to claim silver behind Brits Heather Stanning and Helen Glover at the world championships in Aiguebelette, France, on Saturday.PHOTO/PAUL HARRISON 150905-WORLD-ROWING-CHAMPS

Wanganui rowing star Kerri Gowler and pairs partner Grace Prendergast put Britain's Olympic champs on notice for Rio with a fast-finishing second in the A final at the world championships in Aiguebelette, France on Saturday.

Gowler and Prendergast finished 3.76s behind British Olympic champions Heather Stanning and Helen Glover, but their sprinting in the final 500m when they pushed through the United States, must have left the Brits on alert for the Rio Games. Gowler and Prendergast made the rare switch to compete in the eights final at midnight NZ time last night with fellow Wanganui rower Rebecca Scown on stroke.

"It's been a really awesome season," Prendergast said. "Stepping up to elite racing has been a big challenge, but I think we've done it pretty well," she said after Saturday's race.

Meanwhile, Julia Edward and Sophie MacKenzie defended their title after combining together at short notice last year. They won by 1.21s from Britain's Katherine Copeland and Charlotte Taylor. Copeland and Taylor had beaten them at Varese in June.

Since Nicky Coles and Juliette Haigh combined ahead of the 2004 Olympics, New Zealand have never missed the final at a world championships or Olympics. Since 2009 a Kiwi crew has always medalled, including Scown and Haigh's bronze at the London Games.

They have gone through five transitions since - Scown and Haigh, to Scown and Emma-Jane Feathery, to Scown and Haigh, to Scown and Kayla Pratt, to Scown and Louise Trappitt, to Gowler and Prendergast - but the consistency remains.

And, of course Hamish Bond and Eric Murray won their annual gold.