New Zealand top World Rowing Championships medals table as Twigg's seven-year quest comes off

New Zealand finished top of the medals table at the World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam as victories on the final day from Emma Twigg - after seven years of trying - in the women's single sculls and their women's double sculls crew gave them a total of six golds.

That was two ahead of a British team for whom the men's eight provided a final flourish by defeating Germany's Olympic champions.

Germany and Australia were next in the lists, with two golds each.

On a day when the United States women's eight, unbeaten since 2006, Denmark's defending champions in the lightweight men's four and Croatia's dominant men's double sculls crew of Martin and Valent Sinković all delivered expected victories, the men's eight result was one a several surprises, another being defeat for New Zealand's Olympic single sculls champion Mahé Drysdale at the hands of the defending champion Ondřej Synek of the Czech Republic.

Ondřej Synek celebrates mightily after retaining his world men's single sculls title, with Mahé Drysdale (left) taking silver and bronze going to Angel Fournier Rodriguez ©AFP/Getty Images

Long-time rivals Synek and Drysdale were pitted against each other again in the men's single sculls final, and the Czech athlete followed a new strategy by taking an early lead.

Drysdale bided his time before moving up to challenge the defending champion with 500 metres remaining.

Synek and Drysdale went stroke for stroke to the line as the crowd rose to their feet.

Then Synek found another gear, took his stroke rate to 39 and held the lead.

Synek had successfully retained his 2013 title and claimed his third World Championship crown.

Drysdale earned silver with Cuba's Angel Fournier Rodriguez earning bronze.

"It was head to head at 500m," said Synek.

"I really wanted to beat Mahé so I pushed the rate up above 40.

"It was really go or die."

The big question in the women's single sculls was whether this would finally be the year when Twigg won gold in what was her seventh attempt.

The New Zealander has been dominant this season, twice beating Australia's defending champion Kim Crow in World Cup racing.

By the first 500m marker Crow had inched in the lead and Twigg moved with her.

The two scullers from the Southern Hemisphere then moved away from the rest of the field and Twigg's extra power gave her a lead at the halfway point that she held to the line, with Crow taking silver and China coming through for bronze.

"I felt confident but you never know what's going to happen out there," said Twigg.

At last year's World Championships, a British men's eight stacked with all available talent earned a first gold in defeating Germany's Olympic champions.

The crew that renewed battle in today's final was a significantly different one, lacking the talents which had been directed towards the men's four, but containing nevertheless a formidably competitive set of racers, including double Olympic fours champion Pete Reed.

Germany's victory at the World Rowing Cup in Lucerne last month had indicated they were ready to regain their title, and they took a slight early lead over Britain and Poland.

But Britain, who had had to come through the repechage to get to the final, put on a push which took them into the lead.

They were going for broke, with the highest stroke rate on the course, and they hung on grimly for gold.

Britain's Matt Gotrel described how he had kept his head as the pressure was on and listened out for instructions from his cox, Phelan Hill.

"We all worked through the middle thousand," he said.

"I didn't know we that we had won until I heard Noddy's [the nickname of the British bow man Nathaniel Reilly O'Donnell] roar.

"Much boat-slapping and roaring followed.

Croatia's Sinković brothers, Martin and Valent, celebrate their dominance in the men's double sculls final ©AFP/Getty Images

The Sinković brothers had set a landmark - or perhaps, watermark - world best time of 5min 59.72sec in the semi-finals and they were almost as fast again, clocking 6:00.52 after taking the early lead and never letting go.

The battle for minor medals was fierce, with just half a second separating four crews.

Italy took silver in 6:04.42, one hundredth of a second ahead of Australia, with Lithuania and Germany clocking 6:04.56 and 6:05.02 respectively.

"I enjoyed the race," said Valent.

"The others were in a line and we were watching them.

"It's a great way to watch the World Championships."

A late surge by New Zealand's Piona Bourke and Zoe Stevenson earned them gold in the women's double sculls a year after they had lost that medal in the final stroke.

The Lithuanian crew who beat them in 2013 could not break into the medals this year, finishing fourth as Poland's Magdalena Fularczyk and Natalia Madaj, and Sally Kehoe and Olympica Aldersey of Australia came through for silver and bronze respectively.

Denmark's victorious crew in the lightweight men's four will up their training as they look ahead to the Rio 2016 Olympics ©AFP/Getty Images

Denmark's defending lightweight men's four champions Morten Jørgensen, Jacob Barsoe, Jacob Larsen and Kaser Winther made their intent clear as they took over the early lead from Britain's Olympic silver medallists and never lost their position.

Britain had to accept bronze, however, as a New Zealand crew including a late injury substitute, Alistair Bond, came through at the finish.

"We plan to peak in 2016," said Jørgensen, ominously.

"This year we had to work 30hrs a week but from next year we will train more."

Canada looked the only crew with a faint chance of ending the six-year unbeaten run which has been enjoyed by the US women's eight, whose crew members have spent most of this season racing competitively against each other in different boats.

But after a dominating performance through the second 500m, the Olympic and defending champions made it clear that nothing was going to change, and Canada held off a strong Chinese challenge for silver.

At the end of the regatta the World Rowing flag was handed to Aiguebelette, France, which will play host to next year's World Championships that will double up as the Olympic and Paralympic qualification regatta.