Jérémie Azou Sets New Lightweight Record for France



Lightweight standout Jérémie Azou of France has added yet another feather to his already considerably feathered cap, setting a new French record for lightweight men on the ergometer. Azou, who already holds the LM1x world best time (6:46.93, which he set at the U23 world rowing championships in 2011), blasted through the 2,000m test in 6:02.9. This result comes on the heels of his fourth place finish at the Olympic Games in London with lightweight double partner Stany Delayre, less than 0.8 seconds from a bronze medal. (The duo of Delayre and Azou had won back-to-back World Rowing Cup medals in Lucerne and Munich immediately prior to the Games.) Even more amazing? Azou celebrated his 23rd birthday in 2012.

The lightweight men's indoor world record for 2k is 5:57.4, set last year by none other than Danish lightweight Henrik Stephansen (for a video of the test, click here). In 2012, Stephansen decided to take a crack at qualifying for the Olympic Games in the men's heavyweight single–not only did he succeed in qualifying, Stephansen placed 13th overall. His teammates in the LM2x, Mads Rasmussen and Rasmus Quist, went on to win Olympic gold in one of the most dramatic races at Eton Dorney, sprinting through local favorites and defending Olympic champions Zac Purchase and Mark Hunter on the way to the top of the podium.

Keep sending us your submissions for our rowing recruiting video contest! The final deadline set for 31 December, with some JLRacing swag on the line, as well as a chance to be featured on RR as our Video Of The Week to kick off the New Year.

-RR

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