Coach says betting furore has upset O’Leary

Ireland’s troubled Star crew Peter O’Leary and David Burrows have had a day to reset their gauges and hopefully come out fighting for the second half of their Olympic regatta.

The duo remain under instruction not to discuss an accusation that O’Leary placed bets during the 2008 Olympic regatta in China but the pair, who had established themselves as potential medal contenders, have performed far below expectations.

Their German coach, Marc Pickel, who has helped guide Canadians Ross MacDonald and Mike Wolfs to a silver medal in the class at the 2004 Olympics in Athens is adamant the issue has badly affected their regatta.