Rowing: Mixed results for Olympic champions

WHILE Steve Redgrave and Matthew Pinsent showed their Olympic form to win the French championships here yesterday, the Searle brothers slipped behind the Italian Abbagnale pair and a new French crew to finish third in the coxed pairs.

Pinsent vomited over the side of the boat before his final on Saturday and chose not to race. Although he was not fully fit he did compete yesterday and beat good Belgian and Romanian pairs. He said: 'It was harder than it should have been.' The coxless pair has not yet raced the best opposition from 1992 but will measure the pace in Lucerne in four weeks. They seem to have much in reserve.

The coxed pair of Greg and Jonny Searle is always unpredictable and has appeared less than fully fit this season but won a close race on Saturday over the Italians. But yesterday the order was reversed with the Abbagnales four seconds in front.

The coxed four with Calman Maclennan in place of Nick Burfitt, who has retired, won yesterday, by a narrow margin over a French crew with the British crew for the World Student Games third.

The women's coxless pair of Miriam Batten and Jo Turvey won on both days and is unbeaten this season. Their continued success means that some nations are putting their best athletes into other events.

Results, Sporting Digest, page 29