At the weekend Casey took fifth place in the single sculls heat at the World Rowing Championships in Poznan, Poland.
Casey finished with a time of 7:14.27 in what was the third of four qualifying heats. The winner was current World Champion Mahe Drysdale of New Zealand with a time of 6:57.12.
Casey had a second chance to qualify going into the repechages on Tuesday looking to improve on his performance and earn a place in the semi-finals.
Those who come first and second in the four repechages join the winners of the four heats in the two semi-finals.
The four top world scullers all came first in their heats and automatically qualify for the semi-finals, Olympic champion
Norways Olaf Tufte, Britains Alan Campbell, Mahe Drysdale of New Zealand and finally Belgiums Tim Maeyens. Maeyens is now coached by former Irish national rowing coach, Harald Jahrling.
It has been a tough winter for Rowing and Casey in particular.
Casey, the only member of the Irish heavyweight four to continue on the international circuit after the disappointment of Beijing where his crew finished 10th.
Further news; Ireland will not be sending a team to the European Championships next month. Martin McElroy, the Ireland performance director, said there were no crews of the required standard, and cited financial considerations.
“When there’s a choice of spending money on 20 athletes at a 12-day camp in Cork or one crew which isn’t up to the standard to the European Championships, it is not a difficult decision to make.”
McElroy has been left with no legacy from the last Olympic Cycle and is basically starting with a clean sheet of paper.
