Irish crews get shot at medal glory after semi-final victories

THE lightweight double of Sam Lynch and Gearóid Towey and the coxless four, stroked by Paul Griffin, both had semi-final wins on the Idroscalo lake in Milan yesterday to ease through to Sunday’s A finals at the World Championships.

They joined the lightweight pair, who qualified for their final on Wednesday, meaning that Ireland have three crews in the world's top six.

With the double and four being Olympic events, and this regatta doubling as an Athens qualifier, both boats have also comfortably booked their tickets to Greece, finishing inside the top 11 in their respective fields.