National hopes for Oamaru after 14 make finals line up

Oamaru rowers gave their Senior Nationals and Maadi Cup hopes a boost over the weekend with a presence in seven A finals and seven B finals at the Meridian South Island Rowing Championships.

On the picturesque Lake Ruataniwha, Oamaru's 40 competitors performed well against the South Island's best, Oamaru Rowing Club publicity officer Stewart Mitchell said.

One of the standout performers of the weekend was Julia Fauth, claiming second in the girls U-16 single A final, with a time of 8m 32.12s, just behind Otago's Anna O'Leary (8m 31.96s).

Fauth backed that up with a third placing in the girls U-16 double sculls with Tiana Mihaere.

"That was great," Mitchell said.

Also performing well was Oamaru's Maysie Scott, who came third in the girls U-17 single A final.

Together with Natalie Grant, Scott also came in fourth in the U-17 doubles A final.

Oamaru's womens club coxed eight claimed third in their A finals, while Oamaru's mens novice coxed quad sculls came in seventh in the A finals.

"That with the seven B finals made it all worthwhile," Mitchell said.

Mitchell said there were some top class performers at Lake Ruataniwha, many of whom had access to much better training grounds right on their doorstep than Oamaru rowers.

"Having to travel everywhere, it's hard ... But we do our best" he said.

It was an important regatta for the Oamaru club, after the previous one was virtually blown out by the weather and with the senior nationals coming up in the middle of the month.

The pressure was also on, with the approaching Maadi Cup. "Everyone wants to see how they stand," he said.