Rowing: Third straight gold for British pair

Heather Stanning (left) and Helen Glover strike gold yesterday (Getty Images)

Helen Glover and Heather Stanning are on course to make history for Great Britain at the Olympics after winning a third consecutive Rowing World Cup gold medal in Munich yesterday.

The victorious pair have dominated the three-regatta series and will head into London 2012 next month as favourites to become Britain's first-ever female Olympic rowing champions.

It is Britain's women who are carrying the flag to Eton-Dorney, with the world champion double sculls team of Katherine Grainger and Anna Watkins now unbeaten in 21 races.

Grainger and Watkins saw off their Australian rivals yesterday to win gold by a length and sign off their competitive Olympic preparations with another commanding result.

Britain won a total of eight medals in Munich – three more than at the second regatta in Lucerne – and it was enough to secure the overall World Cup title.

The men's lightweight four of Richard and Peter Chambers, Rob Williams and Chris Bartley also claimed gold with a performance described by GB Rowing performance director David Tanner as "sensational". But elsewhere across the team there was disappointment, with the men's four – Britain's flagship heavyweight crew – forced to accept silver after losing out to Australia.

Half of Britain's medal tally was bronze, which included an encouraging performance from the women's quad of Melanie Wilson, Debbie Flood, Frances Houghton and Beth Rodford.