WITH Tokyo 2020 on their radar after Team GB rowing success in Rio, a strong Welsh contingent made a good start to the combined senior, under-23 and junior World Championships in Rotterdam.

Sisters Mathilda and Charlotte Hodgkins-Byrne, who live near Monmouth and train at the town club when they are home, both stormed into their respective double scull and eight under-23 finals.

Welsh Rowing and Llandaff RC product Zak Lee-Green and fellow Wales cap Charles Waite-Roberts also fought their way into the senior men’s lightweight quadruple sculls final in a tight repechage, grabbing the second qualifying slot by just 0.63secs with Jamie Copus and Jamie Kirkwood.

Gemma Hall made it into the lightweight women's singles semis by coming second in her repechage, while fellow Wales cap Ellie Lewis will be looking to add to the under-23 medal she won in 2013 after her women’s lightweight under-23 quadruple scull raced home second in their heat to qualify direct for the final.

Matt Aldridge and cox Harry Brightmore also made the under-23 coxed four medal race off by winning their repechage, while Cardiff University graduate Tom Barras made the under-23 singles semi-finals – winning his qualifier by clear water.

But Oli Hines will race the B final after finishing fourth in his under-23 pairs repechage with Graham Ord, along with Matt Rowe in the GB junior coxed four, which finished fifth.

Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne and former world junior singles champion Jess Leyden quickly established a lead in their women’s under-23 women's doubles heat and were clear by 500m before easing home.

In their semi the GB duo led early on but were pressed hard by Romania before they turned on the power to repel the challenge and move clear.

And Mathilda's sister, 2014 world junior medallist Charlotte, is also targeting gold after the GB under-23 women’s eight won their 400m repechage.

With Welsh duo Lee-Green at stroke and Waite-Roberts at bow, in the senior championships for non-Olympic events, the GB lightweight quad progressed in second place in the repechage.

World under-23 medallist Hall, in her first senior appearance, beat the Russian singler by the size of a bowball to place third in her heat, crossing 0.04secs ahead.

And in the repechage, she held second from 300m in to come home 1 1/2L up on the Czech sculler to make the semis 2L behind US singler Mary Jones.

Her former Wales and GB crew mate Lewis, plus Maddie Arlett, Mary Wilson and Susannah Duncan, shadowed pace setters Italy from start to finish to secure their final place in second in the under-23 lightweight quads.