Selection for rowing's singles sculls at next year's Olympics is unlikely to come down to a one-off race.

Rob Waddell's win over current world champion Mahe Drysdale at the weekend means the two are set to battle it out for one spot at Beijing.

Rowing New Zealand's Andrew Matheson says while the nationals next March will be key to selection, a variety of other things will also come into consideration. He says they are not heading towards a direct showdown, with testing and other regattas are also part of the process.

Drysdale expressed concern this morning he could be forced to peak twice in 2008 - once to get selected and once at the Games.

But Matheson says in theory, every athlete has to do that every year.