U23 Double Makes International Debut in Italy

Erik and Walter after their heat in Varese

Last Updated: 24.Jul.2014

The SBTC and US U23 double of Erik Frid and Walter Banfield began their campaign at the 2014 Under-23 World Championships in Varese, Italy in the heats today. The duo drew Spain, Russia, Latvia and South Africa, with the top two directly advancing to Saturday's A/B semifinal while the bottom three will race tomorrow in the repechage. Erik and Walter blasted off the line at 49 strokes a minute, settling into third place by the first 500m which they defended all the way to the line. Spain won in a time of 6:31, followed by Russia and the US in 6:37. 

Erik and Walter race in the rep at 10:33 AM local time tomorrow, so 4:33 AM here in Craftsbury. They will be racing in a six-boat field with the top two advancing to Saturday's A/B semifinal and the bottom four to a C/D semifinal Friday afternoon. Good luck to the both of them, go Green and go USA!

Check out their blog at http://u23m2x.blogspot.com/ 

Full results can be found here