As we reach the middle of the summer season, perhaps the most important junior rowing regatta of the year kicks off: the British Junior Rowing Championships. Held over three days in the middle of July, the regatta offers events in 17 categories over four age groups. The majority of the events are sculling events, though there is also a coxless pair and an eight in the mix. The event is held over the classic 2,000 meter course. This year, the Open J16 4x event has a total of 16 entries from around the country. Here are three crews that will be competing in the coming days and a preview of their club’s performance:
Henley Rowing Club
Henley Rowing Club, living up to its club’s legacy, has made a name for itself at junior rowing regattas. They are one of only two clubs to register two boats in this race. Just last year at the British Junior Rowing Championships, the Henley J15 4x- crew, the age group that now makes up the J16 4x- crew, put down a time of 7:23.30, consistently holding onto a 1:50 split, without tapering off like many young crews tend to do. If they kept up this mentality, and their training, they will certainly do well in this race. And signs to point to them doing that as they placed third at the Junior Sculling Head this year!
Windsor Boys
The Windsor Boys will be heading off first in the time trials on Friday. And based on their performance this year, they might just be first at the Junior Rowing Championships. At the Oarsport Junior Sculling Head this year, they placed first, getting the fastest time in both the first and second run out of 26 crews! Their first and second times of 5:49.7 and 6:11.2 respectively gave them a cumulative time of 12:00.9, an undeniably fast time which placed them first by a solid ten seconds.
Tideway Scullers School
The Tideway Scullers School has a similarly impressive record when it comes to the J16 4x+. They were the national champions in the quad in 2019, and have since continued putting good times on the board. At the Oarsport Junior Sculling, where the Tideway Scullers were put up against the Windsor Boys, they came in third, only 18 seconds behind over two races, a distance a boat could certainly make up in one race. Their B crew in the race was just a few seconds behind, showing the consistency in their boat club.
Prediction
Without NSR winners Marlow in attendance it will be all to play for in the Junior men’s 16 quads. These boys would have had 2 months of summer training while older members attend HRR and their female equivalents raced HWR, leaving many J16 event less predictable, but in consequence more exciting. I would suggest possible threats from Lea RC and Clydesdale to upset the momentum of the TSS crew, who I pin to be victors this weekend.
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