Following years of Covid disrupting not only student studies but also their training, 2022 saw some return to normality, with some fantastic racing taking place throughout the season.
Spring
The head race season drew to a close with Women’s Eights Head of the River Race in March, with Oxford Brookes University Boat Club, competing in the open category, finishing second overall behind Leander. Meanwhile, University of London Boat Club took home the University Pennant, beating out Edinburgh, Newcastle and Durham, who were the next student crew’s home. Not only did this round out a strong head race season for UL, but these results would set the tone for the top challengers heading into the regatta season.
The first of the Oxford and Cambridge ties took place with the Lightweight Boat Races taking place the week after WEHORR. Cambridge University Boat Club lightweight women put on a dominant display, beating OUWLRC by 15 lengths in a new lightweight women’s course record for the championship course. Two weeks later saw one of the best Women’s Boat races to take place in the tideway with both Oxford University Women’s Boat Club and Cambridge’s blue boats stacked with former internationals. Cambridge women, boasting a stern pair of Olympians Imogen Grant and Grace Prendergast, helped Cambridge seal the win in a new course record, while victory for Blondie in the reserve race ensured Cambridge women’s clean sweep.
Summer
BUCS is so many athletes’ favourite regatta of the year, and the 2022 edition saw some nail-biting races in what is most university club’s most important 6 lane competition of the year. The Championship Women’s Eight A final proved a fantastic showdown, with Oxford Brookes stamping out their intent for the rest of the summer by edging out UL for victory, and Cambridge rounding out the final podium spot. Cambridge would come out on top for the Women’s Victor Ludorum for the second year running, helped by their lightweight squad who took gold in every lightweight women’s crew event. One of the highlights of the regatta, showcasing the strength of women’s student rowing, was the Championship Single with Royal Holloway’s Vwaire Obukohwo taking a brilliant first place ahead of Nottingham’s Olivia Bates and Cambridge’s Imogen Grant. Edinburgh also put in a strong display, taking the win in the Championship and Intermediate Quad, a testament to the depth of their squad.
This year saw some really strong performances by student crews racing at Henley Women’s 2022 Regatta, pushing top club athletes all the way. It also saw a return post covid of international representation, with Brown University just being edged out into second place in the Championship Quad, before turning the tables to take the win over UL in the Championship Eight final. Other highlights included Becky Wilde, competing for Bath University, taking home the win in the Championship Single, while Imperial College raced brilliantly to reach the final of the Championship Pair.
Henley Women’s was closely followed by Henley Royal Regatta, where the women student eights event, the Island Challenge Cup, was an all-American affair come the final. Brown University were able to back up their win at Henley women’s with a victory over Yale University Boat Club, while Oxford Brookes and UL were the top UK crews having been knocked out on the Saturday. Across the other events one of the most significant shows of student representation came from Imperial College, whose composite crew with Leander took home victory in the Remenham Challenge cup.
Autumn
Although falling in 2022, Four’s Head is often the best measure we have on who has stayed on with the university crews, and what shape student rowing is set to be come 2023. Unsurprisingly, if these results are anything to go by, Brookes look set to be the main challengers heading into the new year, having taking second in Championship Coxed Four and third in the Coxless Four, both times behind Leander to be the top university crew. Meanwhile, UL were the top performing championship student crew in the quad, taking fourth place. With the academic categories at this event serving as a good indicator of the depth of university squads for the 2022/23 season, Cambridge, UL and Reading look set to be strong having taken the top place across the academic categories.
Summary
Heading into 2023 women’s student rowing looks to be in a really exciting place. With internationally athletes back focusing with their national teams, the squads for the likes of Oxford and Cambridge may not be as strong at the top, but across women’s student rowing the strength and depth of the top challengers looks to remain impressive with the likes of UL and Brookes looking to push the very top American crews come Henley Women’s and Henley Royal.
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