Paul O'Donovan settles for third in heavyweight single scull

Elsewhere, Margaret Cremen of UCC RC finished second in the Lightweight Women's Single preliminary race.

THIRD SPOT: Crossing the line in 3rd place, Paul will race in the repechage on Friday, where a place for two crews in the A/B semi-final is up for grabs.

All eyes were on the reigning World Champion Paul O'Donovan, racing for the first time in the heavyweight single scull category while his lightweight doubles partner, Fintan McCarthy, recovers from illness.

In typical O'Donovan fashion, Paul stayed comfortably within the pack for the first half of the race and gradually built up speed coming towards the 2000m mark. Crossing the line in 3rd place, Paul will race in the repechage on Friday, where a place for two crews in the A/B semi-final is up for grabs.