BARCELONA ’92 OLYMPICS / DAY 7 : DAILY REPORT : ROWING : Laumann Shows No Signs of Slowing Down in Sculls

Canada’s Silken Laumann, reigning single sculls world champion, continued her remarkable recovery from a serious injury by winning her Olympic semifinal Friday on Lake Banyoles.

Laumann, 28, cruising at a stroke rate of 30-32 to the minute, won by a length over Belgium’s Annelies Braedel in 7 minutes 30.42 seconds. Laumann, who was hospitalized for three weeks and had five operations to repair nerve and tissue damage to her right leg after a collision with a German pair at the Essen regatta in May, still wears a bandage and leg brace.

Laumann, who was told by the surgeon who treated her that she would not be ready for the Olympics, moved ahead of the field at 800 meters and established a length and three quarters lead before dropping her rate.

In the other semifinal, Romania’s Elisabeta Lipa, silver medalist in both the single and double sculls at last year’s world championships, won by less than two lengths over Anne Marden, the 1988 American silver medalist who struggled in her early heat.

In the men’s coxless fours semifinals, the United States, with two of last year’s silver medalists on board, won its semifinal heat, and world champion Australia won the other.

In the men’s eights, Germany, which has won the world title every year since the Seoul Olympics, where they also took gold, struggled to shake off the United States, winning by less than a length in 5:35.60. The U.S. crew took the lead from the Germans but did not increase its stroke rate when Germany did and lost at the end. The Americans wanted to conserve energy for the final.

WEIGHTLIFTING

CIS Lifter Might Lose Bronze After Walkout at Ceremony

Ibragim Samadov of the Commonwealth of Independent States might be disqualified and stripped of his bronze medal today because he walked off the podium during the medal ceremony.

Samadov left the Olympic arena to loud boos after refusing to accept his medal, apparently angered because fans of Greek gold medalist Pyrros Dimas cheered when Samadov failed on his last lift. Officials of the International Weightlifting Federation said a decision was expected today.

Samadov and two others finished with the same total, but under the rules of weightlifting, Samadov placed third because he was the heaviest of the three. Dimas, the first Greek since 1904 super-heavyweight champion Perikles Kakousis to win a weightlifting medal, took the gold because he reached the final total with fewer lifts. Krzysztof Siemion of Poland won the silver medal.

Officials of the Turkmenistan athletes who are part of the CIS protested that their lifter, Altymourad Orazdourdiev, was pulled out of the tournament by team coach Vasily Alexiev in favor of the Russian Samadov. The lifter was top-ranked in the competition and favored to win.

Former weightlifting champion Tony Urrutia, who fled Cuba for the United States a decade ago, tied his best score in 13 years, then flung his belt to fans and announced his retirement. Urrutia, who competed for Cuba at the Montreal Games in 1976, totaled 749 1/2 pounds to finish 17th for the United States.

JUDO

Koga, Blasco Win Gold Medals in Lightweight Competition

World champions Toshihiko Koga of Japan and Miriam Blasco of Spain won gold medals in lightweight judo. Koga, 24, who won the world title in 1989 and 1991, defeated Bertalan Hajtos of Hungary in the final. Chung Hoon of South Korea and Shay Oren Smadga of Israel earned the bronze medals.

Blasco, 28, the 1991 world champion, defeated Nicola Fairbrother of Britain for the gold medal. Chiyori Tateno of Japan and Driulis Gonzalez of Cuba won bronze medals. Gonzalez defeated Kate Donahoo of Colorado Springs, Colo., in one bronze medal match.

“I don’t know if I had a career day, but I think I did pretty well,” Donahoo said. “I’m not disappointed in my performance at all.”

BADMINTON

American Men Eliminated With Singles, Doubles Losses

The United States was eliminated from men’s badminton competition when Chris Jogis failed to reach the quarterfinal round by losing to Teeranun Chiangta of Thailand, 11-15, 15-3, 15-3.

“I always go out to do my best and my best wasn’t good enough today,” said Jogis of Manhattan Beach. “I made too many errors.”

In men’s doubles, Ben Lee of Daly City and Thomas Reidy of Brooklyn, N.Y., were eliminated, 15-3, 15-6, by Rudy Gunawan and Eddy Hartono of Indonesia, who are ranked second in the world.

Badminton is making its Olympic debut as a medal sport.

MEDALISTS

* WEIGHTLIFTING

(Light-heavyweight)

Gold: Pyrros Dimas (Greece)

Silver: Krzysztof Siemion (Poland)

Bronze: Ibragim Samadov (CIS)

* JUDO

(Women’s 123-pound division)

Gold: Miriam Blasco (Spain)

Silver: Nicola Fairbrother (Britain)

Bronze: Driulis Gonzalez (Cuba)

Chiyori Tateno (Japan)

(Men’s lightweight division)

Gold: Toshihiko Koga (Japan)

Silver: Bertalan Hajtos (Hungary)

Bronze: Chung Hoon (South Korea)

Shay Oren Smadga (Israel)