Finishing fifth at the European Rowing Championship is a bitter pill to swallow for Alan Sinclair but it’s not all doom and gloom for the Olympian.

The Inverness rower was part of the men’s eight crew that ran out of steam in Glasgow, eventually falling out of the podium positions in a punishing race.

The result is a step back for the crew who battled to silver at the Rowing World Cup in June and the 32-year-old has called on his crewmates to roll up their sleeves and get down to work.

“It’s quite a tough pill to swallow but we’ve had a big challenge out there on the water but we’ve underperformed,” he said

“We’ve got a few weeks at an altitude training camp which will be a very tough workout. That will be sorting us out because we need it.

“We’re going to have to get our socks up to compete against the top of the world again.

“I’ve had tough rows before and I’m sure they’ll happen again. But the group of guys have got high expectations of the season.

“We are one of the lead boats so there’s an expectation on ourselves and the team so we’re looking to sort this out and improve.”

Sinclair came fourth in the men’s pair at the Rio Olympics two years ago and offers plenty of experience in this men’s eight crew.

The two-time World Championship medallist missed almost the entirety of 2017 because of shoulder surgery but with the Worlds returning next month, Sinclair revealed he’s in good shape.

He said: “Physically I’ve been feeling strong this week. I’m feeling really good. It’s one of the worst feelings when you’re at your best but you fall slightly short. It’s more to do with the teamwork.

“It all ties into the fact that we are in such an intricate sport with so many variables with so many people that are so important. Every single seat is so crucial to making this all work.

“We just need to keep a cool head and make sure we address things in that way but it’s been a bad result for us and the whole team for the large part.

“There’s a lot of things to address but as long as we stay positive with that as we enter the next few weeks I’m sure we’ll be back up to speed come the World Championships.”

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