28 clubs and schools take titles at National Schools Regatta

Competitors and marshals overcame a feisty cross-headwind, which persisted on all three days of racing

Windsor Boys’ School notched up an impressive six gold medals, while Headington School won four. Radley College and Wycliffe Junior Rowing both won three events.

The 2023 National Schools’ programme was packed, despite a ‘necessary no doubling up’ rule for rowers and limits of one crew per club/school in many events and two in the remainder. The WJ14 coxed quads still attracted 54 entries, and with 40 in the equivalent open event, as well as 53 open and 33 girls’ octs too; rowing is clearly thriving amongst the youngest rowers. In total, 244 races were contested, including time trials, with many of the side-by side heats, reps, semis and finals being run across all eight lanes of the London 2012 course at Dorney Lake.

The cross headwind meant that the draw used the ‘echelon’ pattern, whereby the fastest crews from the initial rounds earned the notable advantage of racing their semis and finals in the more sheltered lanes 1 and 2, nearest the spectators.

Championship events

Eights

In the open event, the three medallists had established their order by the first timing point. At the finish line, St Edward’s took the gold by 2.41 seconds from St Paul’s, despite the latter’s courageous sprint in the last 500m, which saw them take over a second off Teddies’ lead. Eton won the bronze medal. This was an impressive result for St Edwards’, who had been fourth at the Schools’ Head. Schools’ Head winners Shiplake were fifth.

The equivalent girls’ event only attracted half the number of entries (11 versus 22) and the three medallists were more spread out; Headington were clear winners, finishing over 10 seconds ahead silver medallists Surbiton High School, with Henley RC in bronze position, reshuffling the Schools Head pack, where Wycliffe Junior Rowing had won, with Henley second and Headington third.

Quads

Windsor Boys’ School – winners of this event at the Scullery Regatta at the beginning of May – came out on top after a close race in the final, which saw all three medal crews finish within three seconds of each other, well clear of the rest of the field. Marlow took silver, and Leander (winners at the Schools’ Head and Scullery Head) bronze. The event attracted 33 entries.

Although the girls’ event had a similar number of entries (31), the top three were again more spread out. Wycliffe Junior RC took the gold by 3.81 seconds ahead of Marlow, with Henley in bronze medal position, 9.99 seconds behind

Wycliffe showed their strength in depth yet again by winning the 2nd quads event too.

One of the Molesey BC winners of Girls’ Coxless Fours. Photo: AllMarkOne.

Fours

Congratulations go to Aberdeen Schools RA, who won the open championship coxed fours; St Edward’s, winners of the girls’ event; and to Molesey BC and Hinksey Sculling School, who took the gold medals in the open and girls’ coxless fours.

Doubles, pairs and single sculls

The Championship Double Sculls also went to a Scottish crew, brothers Hector and Alexander Patton from St Andrew BC. Molesey’s Olivia Cheesmur and Amelie Davies won the Championship Girls’ Doubles.

Sam Williams and Isaak Thurnham of Emanuel School secured the gold medal in the Championship Pairs, while another Scottish entry – Sarah Happs and Amy Newton of George Herriot’s School – was victorious in the Championship Girls’ Pairs.

Ben Mead of Cambridge 99, won the Championship Single Sculls, which had attracted 26 entries, by over 13 seconds from William Morgan-Jones of Hereford Cathedral School, with the bronze going to Tyne ARC’s Robert Collen, who had also been a bronze medallist at the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals last year.

In a much larger field of 48, Briony Wood of Glasgow Academy won the Championship Girls’ Single Sculls by 9.3 seconds from Chloe Shepherd of Hartpury, with Ella Darrington of Peterborough City RC third.

Other events

The final of the J16 Double Sculls had one of the most exciting finishes amongst the younger age group events, when the Ribbens brothers Jack (who had won the J16 single sculls at the Scullery Regatta) and his J15 brother Ben, produced a phenomenal second half to overtake Hartpury and stay ahead to take the gold medal.

Event	Open Winner	Girls’ Winner
2nd 8+	Radley	Henley RC
3rd 8+	Radley	-
2nd 4x	Leander	Wycliffe Junior RC
J16 1st 8+	Eton	Wallingford
J16 2nd 8+	Eton	-
J16 4+	Great Marlow School	Marlow RC
J15 4+	Great Marlow School	Nottingham and Union RC
J16 4x	Windsor Boys’	Henley RC
2nd J16 4x	Windsor Boys’	Marlow RC
J16 2x	Bewl Bridge RC	Wycliffe Junior RC
J15 1st 8+	Radley	Wimbledon HS
J15 2nd 8+	Abingdon	Headington
J15 1st 4x+	Windsor Boys’	Headington
J15 2nd 4x+	Windsor Boys’	Sir William Borlase’s
J14 8x+	St Paul’s	Enniskillen Royal BC
2nd J14 8x	Windsor Boys’	Surbiton HS
J14 4x+	Walbrook RC	Henley RC

You can check the full results here, look at photos from AllMarkOne here, and watch back the video footage of all three days here.