Crunch race for Beechey

12:37pm Wednesday 23rd July 2008

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MATT Beechey's Great Britain lighweight quad scull will have to step up their game at the World Rowing Championships in Austria today to make the six-boat medal race-off.

The Worcester Rowing Club man's crew finished third in their heat behind world champions Italy and the Czech Republic and were slower than the first four over the line in heat one, where 2007 world silver medallists France took the sole direct qualifying slot to the final.

Beechey's boat, who include 2007 world bronze medallists Simon Jones and Rob Williams, plus Alisdair Leighton-Crawford, must finish in the top four of the repechage against the Czechs, Turkey, Germany and America if they are not to face an early elimination from the regatta.

With only seven boats entered, if they go out they will not even have a 'B' final to race because they will have no opponents.

But strokeman Beechey, 31, in his 12th world championships, took bronze in the crew at the World Cup in Poznan, Poland, four weeks ago and his boat are well capable of making the final in Linz if they row at their best.

GB went out hard and were only half-a-length down on the Italians at the 500m mark. But the world champions had clear water by half-way, where the Czechs had also moved through by a few feet.

They were unable to get back on terms, finishing five seconds down on Italy in six minutes 02.66 seconds with the Czechs three-quarters of a length in front in second.