SIX Wales rowers are launching out for GB in Belgrade this weekend in the first international regatta since Tokyo, reports NICK HARTLAND.

The first World Cup Regatta of the year marks the first competition of a shortened three-year Olympic cycle, owing to the year-long postponement of the 2020 Olympics.

And with Paris 2024 now just over two years away, a new-look GB team will be aiming to put the nation back on top of the podium after a tough last Olympiad that ended in six agonising fourth places alongside the men’s quad’s silver and the men’s 8s’ bronze.

Welsh Rowing and Cardiff University graduate Tom Barras races with two new crew mates in the quad in Serbia following his stunning success in Tokyo.

Sam Meijer and Seb Devereux fill the seats vacated by retirees Jack Beaumont and Angus Groom, while Olympic crew mate Harry Leask completes the crew.

Meanwhile, former Wales Home Countries singles champion Graeme Thomas, who has topped Britain’s sculling rankings for the last four years, will make his GB bow in the single after winning world medals in quad and double.

Last August, he realised a long-held dream to land Henley Royal’s Diamond Sculls before retaining the GB trials regatta title at Caversham last month in a tight race narrowly ahead of Leask and Barras.

The men’s pairs sees Welsh Rowing product and Olympic 8s medallist Josh Bugajski stay with former Wales junior Matt Aldridge after their victory in the trials regatta.

Bugajski, also a Wales HCI singles winner who learnt to row at Cardiff University, was part of the GB set-up throughout the last Olympiad, while Aldridge has a host of World U23 and Henley medals, and took fours silver in a ‘Project Paris’ GB four at the last World Cup of 2021.  

They’ll be up against Bugajski’s Welsh Tokyo 8 crewmate Ollie Wynne-Griffith, who finished second in the trials with fellow Olympic medallist Tom George.    

And completing the Welsh line-up in Serbia is Oxford Brookes cox Harry Brightmore, who steers the men’s 8 and has a wealth of experience, including numerous Henley medals and a world championship appearance in the coxed pair to his name.

Announcing the team, newly appointed British Rowing Director of Performance Louise Kingsley, who represented Wales in the 1986 Commonwealth Games, said: “I know how excited the full team are to be getting back to competing out on the water.

“Despite the limited racing over the past eight months, we’ve been very busy behind the scenes, bringing in a new structure and new coaching team to help get us in the best possible shape to challenge for medals going forward and to help us evolve us into a contemporary and world-leading programme.

“World Cup I is the first step on our journey to Paris 2024 and will set a good marker for the start of the 2022 season.”

All of Sunday’s finals are live on the BBC Red Button, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website from 9.30am to 1.45pm.

For more information see www.britishrowing.org/2022/05/the-journey-to-paris-2024-starts-now-for-the-gb-rowing-team/

To keep up to speed with results, go to https://worldrowing.com/event/2022-world-rowing-cup-i