WELLINGTON, Feb. 29 (Xinhua) -- A showdown will begin on Sunday between New Zealand's Rob Waddell and Mahe Drysdale for the men's single sculls berth at the Beijing Olympics, Radio New Zealand reported on Friday. The rules state only one entrant per country. Waddell, 33, was a double world champion and won the Olympic gold in Sydney 2000. He then became a grinder with the unsuccessful Team New Zealand America's Cup defence team in 2003 and also the challenger team in 2007. Waddell announced a comeback to rowing late last year and is competing against triple world champion Drysdale, 23, for a berth in the Beijing Olympics. The pair have already clashed four times this summer with Waddell leading 3-1, including a national championship victory last weekend. But Drysdale is confident he can bounce back. Rowing New Zealand's high performance manager Andrew Matheson said racing will include at least two or three 2000 meter races between the pair. Only one can represent New Zealand in the single sculls event. However, there's hope the loser of the duel could still go to Beijing as part of one of the other rowing combinations. The selection will be decided by the Olympic Committee. An announcement is due next Friday.
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