NZ rowing mates to become rivals
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/2830390/NZ-rowing-mates-to-become-rivals
The Olympic bronze-medal pairing of Nathan Twaddle and George Bridgewater are getting back on the water but in separate boats for rival crews.
Twaddle will represent Waikato University in the Gallagher Great Race on September 27 and will row against his former men's pair partner Bridgewater, part of the Oxford University crew.
The duo won bronze at last year's Beijing Olympics but appear unlikely to feature in the same boat again, with Bridgewater pondering his retirement from rowing while Twaddle eyes a different boat as he aims at next year's world championships at Lake Karapiro and the 2012 London Olympics.
Eric Murray and Hamish Bond completed a dominant season as New Zealand's new pair combination with victory at the world champs in Poland last weekend and Twaddle said a combination of their form and Bridgewater's planned absence meant he will set his sights on a new crew.
"I want to get back into the national summer squad when that's named later this month and get back in a crew for when they name the team in March next year," Twaddle said.
"It's a matter of getting fast and then being able to sell my case. I do want to be in a world class boat I haven't come back to be a journeyman," said Twaddle, who has been back training for the past 10 weeks after an operation on his wrist.
Twaddle, who became a first-time father on Sunday when wife Andrea gave birth to son William, said the lure of racing against Bridgewater and in an eight helped his training and motivation.
"It's going to be great to have George racing, that's a unique drawcard, and being part of an eight has helped draw me back in. It's nice to race in a big quick boat and train with a good bunch of guys."
Bridgewater is studying at Oxford and was part of the Oxford crew that won the 155th Boat Race against Cambridge in March.
"I have been getting excited about this race since the Boat Race," said Bridgewater, who has previously represented Waikato University in the annual race on the Waikato River.
The Waikato University men's crew features three-times world lightweight single sculls champ Duncan Grant, Olympic sculler Nathan Cohen and world under-23 champs Joseph Sullivan, Graham Oberlin-Brown and Tobias Wehr-Candler.
Single sculls star Emma Twigg, fourth at the world champs, spearheads the strong Waikato Uni women's crew to race against Sydney University.