WARRINGTON Tokyo Olympian Lucy Glover has been handed a tough challenge in the 2023 World Rowing Championships which start in Belgrade, Serbia, tomorrow.

The former Lymm High School student, who competes for both Warrington Rowing Club and Edinburgh University, has been selected by British Rowing to tackle the women’s single sculls.

Last year Glover, 24, won bronze with her crew in the women’s quadruple sculls in the world championships staged at Labe Arena in Račice, Czech Republic.

It was a boat she appeared settled in, and the one in which she represented Team GB in the Tokyo Olympics, won gold in last year’s European Championships and sealed bronze in the 2023 European Championships at Bled in Slovenia.

But this year she has had to cope with being shuffled about by the selectors, which has been to her detriment.

For World Cup II in Varese, Italy, in June, Glover was called on to compete in the women’s double sculls with Saskia Budgett from Tideway Scullers School and, while they finished 10th overall, the quadruple sculls crew won the silver medal.

Glover was then chosen for the women’s single sculls in World Cup III in Lucerne, Switzerland, last month but a late withdrawal resulted in Glover switching back to the quad, going on to win the silver as GB topped the medal count and won the series overall.

Despite that success, Glover is now facing the biggest event of the year in the unfamiliar women’s singles.

As well as GB looking to win as many medals as possible in the World Championships, it is the first opportunity to qualify boats for the Paris Olympics in 2024 - which double’s this event’s importance.

Glover started rowing, 12 years old, at Warrington Rowing Club and won a silver medal at the World Rowing Junior Championships in the quad (JW4x) in 2016.

Moving up to U23 level, she won gold, bronze and then gold again in the women’s quad from 2017-2019.

She made her senior debut at the European Rowing Championships in 2021, where she won a silver medal in the quad (W4x).

The crew then raced at the Tokyo Olympic regatta, where they finished seventh.

In 2022 her W4x finished fourth at World Cup I but she doubled up in double sculls, with Glover winning bronze with Jess Leyden, just behind their crew mates.

The quad then took the silver medal at World Cup III, bronze in the World Championships and capped the year with the European gold.