Esme Booth bidding for World gold after European silver

By Paul Martin, Sportsbeat World Championship debutant Esme Booth hopes the hard work on her sprint finish pays off as she looks to upgrade her European silver. Ad Booth and Emily Ford were pipped at the post in the women's pair final in Munich last month as Romanian duo Ioana Vrînceanu and Denisa Tîlvescu powered past them on the home straight to claim the spoils. RowingRebecca Shorten targeting first World Championship podium finish36 MINUTES AGO The British pair have been working tirelessly on camp in Varese since and the Stratford-upon-Avon rower believes the final piece of the jigsaw is within sight.

«We were working on that middle 1km going into Munich and we were really happy with how that went,» she said. «It was just in the last 250m that the Romanians came back at us. We've been away on camp to work on that sprint and how to execute that as best we can to complete the whole race profile.

»I'm happy with where we're at and it's my first senior Worlds so it will be a whole new experience. «I've been to an Under-23 one but this will be a big step up, so there's a mixture of excitement and nerves. I'm really looking forward to seeing how it goes.» The 23-year-old’s silver was one of 10 won by the British rowing squad in Munich as they finished top of the medal table.

And Booth reckons the results are testament to the feelgood factor around the new-look squad, who have been rejuvenated by fresh faces after coming home from Tokyo with just two medals last summer. «We've had the para squad with us on camp and it's just a really exciting team to be a part of,» she said. «We are moving forwards and achieving things together as a team, everyone is genuinely excited for each other and wants everyone else to do the