Solesbury steps in to race with Partridge at GB Trials
World Champion Alex Partridge has a last-minute replacement for his men’s pair entry at The GB Rowing Senior Trials taking place in Hazewinkel, Belgium, on Sunday and Monday (15 and 16 April).
Partridge had intended to race with Richard Egington his Leander club team-mate who has withdrawn because of a stomach bug. He will now race with GB Senior International Tom Solesbury of Molesey BC in a pairing described by the team management today as having the "potential to be quite quick".
The GB Rowing Senior Trials will feature more than 170 more than participants striving to get into the squad in a year in which Great Britain aims to qualify as many boats as possible for the 2008 Olympic Games through the summer’s world championships in Munich.
A good showing in this year can have bearing on the Olympic squad next year. Many of the younger athletes will also have an eye on World U23 squad places in 2007.
Lead coaches Jurgen Grobler, for the men, and Paul Thompson, for the women and lightweights, have added a bit more spice for the senior squads by signalling that the seats in the lead crews are open to change.
Both the GB men’s four and the GB women’s quadruple scull, sponsored by Camelot, are reigning world champions. Yet names like Andy Hodge, Peter Reed, Alex Partridge and even Olympic champion Steve Williams alongside
double Olympic silver medallist Katherine Grainger, Fran Houghton, Debbie Flood and Sarah Winckless know that being a world champion or Olympic medallist does not mean that selection into the lead boats is a foregone conclusion.
The leading women will race in single sculls in Belgium.
Pressure to the established order in the event could come from names such as Annie Vernon and Anna Bebington, who raced to world cup medals in the Siemens-sponsored double scull last season.
Grainger, Flood, Houghton, Bebington, Vernon and 2004 Olympic bronze medallist Elise Laverick will all hope to make the A Final in the absence of world champion Sarah Winckless who is making a good recovery from injury. Should Grainger win the event, it will be her fourth victory.
Matt Langridge, former world junior single scull champion, who competed in the Siemens-sponsored men’s eight last year, subbed into the men’s four for an injured Alex Partridge two months ago in Seville at the FISA Team Cup and may fancy his chances of breaking through again.
He races in a pair with Steve Williams in Belgium whilst Partridge now teams up with Molesey’s Tom Solesbury. Andy Hodge, also of Molesey, and Leander’s Peter Reed, meanwhile, will be looking to repeat their wins of 2005 and 2006 in the men’s pair and Hodge will be seeking his fourth win in a row after victory in 2004 with Partridge.
Colin Smith, winner of a world cup silver in the men’s pair last season, has joined forces with emerging youngster and world junior champion, Tom Lucy of Oxford Brookes University. Australian Youth Olympic gold medallists Lewis Beech, of Stourport, and Mohammed Sbihi of Molesey, a graduate of the the ARA’s World Class Start programme, sponsored by Siemens, will also race in a pair.
Peter Champion, Kieran West and Tom James, all representing Cambridge University, will hope to ride off the back of their Boat Race success last weekend. West and James race together whilst Champion, a former GB U23 international, competes with Oli de Groot who rowed in the Cambridge reserve boat, Goldie.
A fascinating duel should transpire in the women’s pairs event with many of last year’s "eights" group vying for a seat in the women’s pair at the opening world cup of the season. The main contenders should be the pairings of Natasha Howard and Alison Knowles, Beth Rodford and Natasha Page, along with Carla Ashford and Katie Greves.
The men’s single scull looks to be a fascinating contest involving 2006 world cup leader, Alan Campbell and Stephen Rowbotham and Matt Wells, world bronze medallists in the Siemens-sponsored men’s double scull last year. Athens Olympian Ian Lawson could also spring a surprise while this is also an event featuring several world class start graduates including Sam Townsend and Bill Lucas, of Reading Uni, and Charles Cousins of Rob Roy.
Coaches Thompson and Robin Williams have been working on developing a lightweight squad with more strength in depth and this may well become apparent in Belgium.
Helen Casey of Wallingford, the defending champion, will no doubt be expecting a strong challenge from Hester Goodsell, the 2005 world under-23 champion, as well as Jane Hall, Sophie Hosking of Durham Uni and and Mathilde Pauls in the women’s single scull.
For the women’s lightweight squad there is only one Olympic-class boat for which to challenge – the lightweight double scull.
In the men’s equivalent discipline, reignign world single scull champion, Zac Purchase, has made the running all winter and will start as favourite while challengers could include 2006 double scull Mark Hunter and James Lindsay-Fynn and emerging former under-23 James Clarke, stroke of the fifth-placed lightweight men’s four at the World Championships last August at Eton.
For the men’s lightweight squad there are six Olympic seats at stake in the lightweight men’s four and the lightweight men’s double scull.
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ADAPTIVE UPDATE
Meanwhile GB’s adaptive* rowers will be in action at their trials to be held at Caversham.
All of the rowers who competed and won medals in Siemens-sponsored boats at the 2006 World Championships at Eton will be in action.
Coach Chad King is delighted at the increase
in numbers who are trialling this year and says that some of the newcomers could put pressure on existing medallists.
Shaun Sewell, for instance, could face a fascinating duel in his disability category with Tom Aggar and Kevin Brooks.
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SCHEDULE/ENTRY LIST
SCHEDULE
Racing will take place as follows at the GB Rowing
Senior Trials:
Sunday 15 April:
09.30 – 10.30 – Time trials
14.00 – 18.20 – Semi-finals
Monday 16 April:
08.00 – 11.30 – Finals
PM – reserve period in case of weather postponement.
ENTRY
Name (club in brackets)
OPEN
WOMEN
Pair
Carla Ashford (Thames RC)/Katie Greves (Uni
of London).
Jessica Eddie (Uni of London)/Baz Moffat (Thames RC).
Natasha Howard (Tideway Scullers)/Alison Knowles
(Thames RC).
Louisa Reeve (Leander Club)/Georgina Menheneott
(Mortlake Anglian & Alpha BC).
Beth Rodford (Thames RC)/Natasha Page (Reading Uni).
Rebecca Rowe (Rebecca)/Vicki Etiebet (Auriol Kensington RC).
Rachel Loveridge (Leander Club)/Louisa Rowbotham (Uni
of London).
Linsday Maguire (Birmingham Uni)/Alice Freeman (Wallingford).
Vicky Myers (Leander Club)/Jo Cook (Leander Club).
Hilary Powell (Wallingford RC)/Jo Lyons (Worcester RC).
Roz Collins (Nottingham RC)/Vicky Bryant (Oxford
Brookes Uni).
Rachael Jefferies (Cambridge Uni)/Stephanie McDowall
(Aberdeen Uni).
Maria Larsen (Nottingham RC)/Lizzie Hodges (Uni of London).
Heather Stanning (Uni of Bath)/Olivia Whitlam (Agecroft RC)
Emily Taylor (Durham Uni)/Hannah Elsy (Durham Uni).
Single scull
Anna Bebington (Leander Club)
Briony Cavell (Wallingford RC)
Debbie Flood (Leander Club)
Katherine Grainger (St Andrew BC)
Frances Houghton (Uni of London BC)
Elise Laverick (Thames RC)
Florence Temple (Thames RC)
Annie Vernon (Thames RC)
Lauren Fisher (Reading Uni BC)
Franki Jus-Burke (Nottingham RC)
Anna McNuff (Uni of London BC)
Kirsty Myles (Oxford Brookes Uni)
Jacqui Round (Nottingham RC)
Atlanta St John (Reading Uni)
Lucy Walczak (Hollingworth Lake RC)
Ruth Walczak (Hollingworth Lake RC)
MEN
Pair
Marcus Bateman (Leander Club)/Jonno Devlin
(Oxford Brookes Uni).
Pete Champion (Cambridge Uni)/Oli de Groot
(Cambridge Uni).
Tom Solesbury (Molesey BC)/Alex Partridge (Leander
Club).
Alastair Heathcote (Army RC)/Robin Bourne-Taylor
(Army RC).
Andy Hodge (Molesey BC)/Peter Reed (Leander Club).
Hugo Lee (Oxford Brookes Uni)/Josh West (Leander Club).
James Orme (Leander Club)/Tom Stallard (Leander Club).
Colin Smith (Leander Club)/Tom Lucy (Oxford Brookes Uni).
Phil Turnham (Reading Uni BC)/Bradley Whale (Reading Uni).
Kieran West (Cambridge Uni)/Tom James (Cambridge Uni).
Steve Williams (Leander Club)/Matt Langridge (Leander Club).
Chris Abraham (Oxford Brookes Uni)/Will Bryant (Oxford
Brookes Uni).
Lewis Beech (Stourport BC)/Mohammed Sbihi (Molesey BC).
Charlie Brereton (Leander Club)/Joshua Davidson
(Leander Club).
Charles Burkitt (Leander Club)/Richard Chambers (Oxford Uni).
Nick Clark (Leander Club)/Tom Wilkinson (Leander Club).
Martin Hill (Durham Uni)/Chris Covey (Durham Uni).
Dave Lyons (Uni of Bath)/Will Laughton (Imperial College BC).
Pete Marsland (Molesey BC)/James Foad (Molesey BC).
Olly Moore (Imperial College BC)/Ben Smith (Imperial College BC).
Peter Randolph (Uni of Bristol)/Chris Thomas (Nottingham Uni).
Rob Rayner (Molesey BC)/Karl Hudspith (Molesey BC).
Ruben Regianni (Oxford Brookes Uni)/Alex Holden-Smith
(Oxford Brookes Uni)
Nathaniel Reilly O’Donnell (Uni of London)/Cameron Nichol
(Uni of London).
Colin Scott (Goldie BC)/Tom Ransley (York RC).
Rob Stark (Durham Uni)/Anthony Hurley (Durham Uni).
Single scull
Richard Blagrove (Leander Club).
Alan Campbell (Tideway Scullers).
Robin Dowell (Agecroft RC).
Simon Fieldhouse (Molesey BC).
Alex Gregory (Reading Uni).
Ian Lawson (Leander Club).
Charlie Palmer (Leander Club).
Henry Pelly (Newcastle Uni).
Tom Solesbury (Molesey BC).
Steve Rowbotham (Leander Club).
Matt Wells (Leander Club).
Nick Baker (Molesey BC).
Charles Cousins (Rob Roy BC).
Brendan Crean (Agecroft RC).
Fred Gill (Newcastle Uni).
Martin Haymes (Oxford Brookes Uni).
George Laughton (Newcastle Uni).
Bill Lucas (Reading Uni).
Dan Ritchie (Reading Uni).
Sam Townsend (Reading Uni).
Will Robinson (Oxford Brookes Uni)
LIGHTWEIGHT
WOMEN
Single scull
Helen Casey (Wallingford RC).
Steph Cullen (London RC).
Andrea Dennis (Wallingford RC).
Jen Goldsack (Wallingford RC).
Hester Goodsell (Rob Roy BC).
Jane Hall (Leander Club).
Naomi Hoogesteger (Uni of London).
Sophie Hosking (Durham Uni).
Helen Mason (London RC).
Mathilde Pauls (Imperial College BC).
Laura Ralston (London RC).
Melissa Sage (Mortlake Anglian & Alpha BC).
Sophie Bradshaw (Durham Uni).
Frances Fletcher (Durham Uni).
Laura Greenhalgh (Roby Roy BC).
Steph Mottram (Marlow RC).
Emma Steel (Durham Uni BC).
MEN
Single scull
Chris Bartley (Wallingford RC).
Matt Beechey (Leander Club).
Andrew Berridge (Leander Club).
Richard Chambers (Oxford Brookes Uni).
James Clarke (London RC).
Dave Currie (Leander Club).
Andrew Dax (Leander Club).
Nick English (Wallingford RC).
Richard Hardy (Tideway Scullers School).
Danny Harte (London RC).
Will Hoodless (Upper Thames RC).
Mark Hunter (Leander Club).
Ross Hunter (Leander Club).
Simon Jones (Leander Club).
Paul Kelly (Oxford Uni BC).
Alistair Leighton-Crawford (Tideway Scullers School).
James Lindsay-Fynn (London RC).
Paul Mattick (Wallingford RC).
Dave McNeil (Leander Club).
Joseph O’Neil (Lea RC).
Zac Purchase (Marlow RC).
Simon Barr (Durham Uni BC).
Chris Boddy (Tees RC).
Henry Chin (Durham Uni BC).
Nick Fearnhead (Durham Uni BC).
Adam Freeman-Pask (Imperial College BC).
James Harris (Durham Uni).
Stuart Heap (Uni of Birmingham BC).
Bob Hewitt (Scarborough ARC).
James Hiatt (Uni of London BC).
Chris Logan (Glasgow Uni BC).
Carl Maw (Durham Uni BC).
Ashley Price (Oxford Brookes Uni).
Pete Stuart (Uni of London).
Leon Taylor (Tideway Scullers School).
Rob Williams (London RC).
Coxes
Acer Nethercott (Bosporous BC).
Caroline O’Connor (Oxford Brookes Uni).
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GB ROWING SQUADS HOME TOWN LIST:
2006/7
NAME D.O.B/PLACEofBIRTH/HOMETOWN/LIVING/ROWING CLUB
Carla Ashford 13.03.79/Northallerton,N.Yorks/Masham,N.Yorks/Brentford/Thames RC
Chris Bartley 02.02.84/Farndon, Cheshire/Nottingham/Notts Uni
Marcus Bateman 16.09.82/Bermuda/Torquay/Henley on Thames/Reading Uni
Anna Bebington 13.02.83/Leek, Staffs/Leek/Crowthorne, Berks/Leander
Matt Beechey 03.04.77/Worcester/Worcester/Henley on Thames/Leander
Nick Brodie 06.08.96/Oxford/Oxford/Oxford/OUBC
Alan Campbell 05.09.83/Coleraine/Coleraine/Mortlake/Tideway Scullers
Helen Casey 06.02.74/Stockport/Oxford/Oxford/Wallingford
Richard Chambers 10.06.85/Belfast/Coleraine/Oxford/Oxford Brookes
James Clarke 13.12.84/London/London/Durham/Durham Uni
Karen Cromie 24.09.79/Banbridge, N.Ireland/Ballinamallard, Cty Fermanagh/n/a/Royal Docks BC
Alan Crowther 29.07.65/??/Derby/Derby/Nottingham BC
Dave Currie 10.01.82/Glamorgan/Henley/Henley/Leander
Ryan Davies 16.02.85/??/Henley on Thames/Oxford Brookes
Jonno Devlin 17.03.76/South Africa/Oxford/Putney/Oxford Brookes
Lindsay Dick 27.07.71/Strathaven/??/??Glasgow RC
Katie-George Dunlevy 26.11.81/??/Maidenhead/Maidenehead RC
Jess Eddie 07.10.84/Durham/Durham/Chiswick/Uni of London
Richard Egington 26.02.79/Knutsford/Knutsford/Henley on Thames/Leander
Robin Ejsmond-Frey 14.03.86/London/Hammersmith/Oxford/OUBC
Nick English 11.05.78/Coventry/Whitley Bay/Nottingham/Notts&Union
Vicki Etiebet 12.08.79/Ottowa, Canada/London/London/Auriol Kensington
Simon Fieldhouse 04.09.76/Molesey/Molesey/Thames Ditton/Molesey
Debbie Flood 27.02.80/Harrogate/Leeds/Henley on Thames/Leander
Toby Garbett 14.11.76/Chertsey, Sy/West Byfleet/Ascot, Berks/Leander
Hester Goodsell 27.06.84/London/London/Cambridge/Rob Roy
Katherine Grainger MBE 11.12.75/Glasgow/Aberdeen/Bisham, Bucks/St Andrew
Alex Gregory 11.03.84/Cheltenham/Wormington/Reading/Reading Uni
Katie Greves 02.09.82/London/Oxford/Mortlake/Uni of London
Jane Hall 20.10.73/Kingston-upon-Thames/Surbiton/Caversham/Leander
Joanna Hammond 28.1.80/Leamington Spa/Leamington/Cambridge/Leander
Vicki Hansford 31.10.79/Lewisham/Fleet/Fleet/Guildford RC
Daniel Harte 12.12.75Edinburgh/Edinburgh/Battersea/London
Mike Hennessy 24.12.76/London/Deptford/Chiswick/Tideway Scullers
Rob Hollis 14.02.84/Wendover/Monmouth/Cowley/Oxford Brookes
Sophie Hosking??/??/??/Durham Uni
Frances Houghton 19.09.80/Oxford/Oxford/Putney/Uni of London
Natasha Howard 03.09.80/Harare, Zimbabwe/West Runton/Chiswick/Tideway Scullers
Mark Hunter 01.07.78/Forest Gate, London/Romford/Cadmore End,Bucks/Leander
Ross Hunter 13.07.81/??/??/Cadmore End, Bucks/Leander
Tom James 03.11.84/Cardiff/Wrexham/Cambridge/CUBC
Simon Jones 08.06.78n/a/n/a/Cropwell Butler/Leander
Alison Knowles 27.03.82/Bournemouth/Bournemouth/Putney, London/Thames
Matthew Langridge 20.05.83/Northwich, Cheshire/Northwich/Henley Leander
Elise Laverick 27.07.75/Rustington, Sx/Poling, W Sx/Putney/Thames
Ian Lawson 04.03.77/Bradford/Otley, W.Yks/Henley on Thames/Leander
Hugo Lee 05.03.84/Guildford/Jeburgh/Oxford/Oxford Brookes
Alistair Leighton-Crawford ?/?/?/?/Tideway Scullers
James Lindsay-Fynn 29.09.75/Dublin/Trim, Ireland/London/London
Alastair Mckean 14.04.79/Canterbury/Whitstable/Whitstable/Herne Bay ARC
Tim Male 09.07.75/Yeovil, So/Yeovil/Chiswick/Tideway Scullers
Paul Mattick 25.04.78/Bath/Oxford/Wallingford
Baz Moffat 8.4.78/Edinburgh/Bradford/Putney/Thames RC
Acer Nethercott 28.11.77/Newmarket/Harlow, Ex/Oxford/OUBC
Lorna Norris 23.12.75n/a/na/a/Mortlake/Mortlake Anglian
Caroline O’Connor 25.04.83Ealing/Ealing/Ealing/Oxford Brookes
James Orme 1.4.84/London/Colchester/Cambridge/Leander
Natasha Page 30.04.85n/a/Hartpury/Reading/Reading Uni
Charlie Palmer 25.10.78/Melbourne/Hagley,Tasmania/Cambridge/CUBC
Tom Parker 24.10.82/Hammersmith/Winchester/Oxford/OUBC
Alex Partridge 25.01.81/San Francisco/Alton, Hants/East Sheen/Leander
Seb Pearce 10.05.82/?/Bromsgrove/Oxford/OUBC
Zac Purchase 2.5.86/??/Tewkesbury/Tewkesbury/Marlow RC
Peter Reed 27.07.81/Seattle, USA/Nailsworth/Oxford/Leander
Helene Raynsford 29.12.79/Halfax, Yorks/Frimley/Frimley/Guildford RC
Naomi Riches 15.06.83/Hammersmith/Harrow Weald, Middlesex/Marlow RC
James Roberts 11.05.86/Mons, Belgium/Swansea/Cardiff/Rebecca
Beth Rodford 28.12.82/Burton/Trent/Gloucester/Cowley/Thames
Steve Rowbotham 11.11.81n/a/Winscombe/West Molesey/Leander
Rebecca Rowe 16.5.81/Bridgend/Cardiff/Cardiff/Rebecca
Shaun Sewell 10.05.75/Forest Gate, London/Manor Park, London/London/Royal Docks RC
Alan Sherman 22.10.51/Wuppertal, Germany/London/London/Thames Tradesmen
Tom Solesbury 23.9.80/Farnborough/Petts Wood/Henley-on-Thames/Molesey
Colin Smith 03.09.83/ Harare, Zimbabwe/Henley on Thames/Oxford/OUBC
Tom Stallard 11.09.78/London/Welwyn, Herts/London/Leander
Sam Townsend 26.11.85/ Reading/Reading/Reading/Reading Uni
Andy Triggs Hodge 03.08.79/Aylesbury/Hebden, Skipton/East Molesey/Molesey
Matt Tucker 05.01.85/??/Winkfield, Nr Windsor/Oxford Brookes
Antonia van Deventer 23.7.78/?/London/Leander
Annie Vernon 01.09.82n/a/Wadebridge, Cornwall/Marlow, Bucks/Thames
Matthew Wells 19.04.79/Bradford/Hexham/East Sheen/Uni of London
Josh West 25.03.77/Santa Fe, USA/Santa Fe/Oxford/Leander
Kieran West MBE 18.09.77/Kingston-upon-Thames/W. Byfleet/Mortlake CUBC
Steve Williams MBE 15.04.76/Warwick/Cheltenham/Henley/Leander
Sarah Winckless 18.10.73/Reading/Hurley, Bucks/Marlow, Bucks/Walbrook
