JRN

British Rowing Junior Championships 2023 – Women’s Junior 18 Coxless Fours Preview

All imagery credit to AllMarkOne

Following the move from the turbulent waters of Nottingham, Scotland has taken centre stage in junior rowing hosting this year at Strathclyde Park. Now is the time to showcase their incredible talent and this is certainly clear in the WJ18 4- where Scottish crews make up half of the entries!

Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association

While not quite home turf for Aberdeen, they are sure to be glad to see the move from Dorney Lake to Strathclyde. It goes without saying that Aberdeen, have produced some strong athletes over the years with several going on to represent GB at some of the highest levels. Furthermore, as winners of last year’s event, ASRA will want to hold onto that title for as long as possible. In addition to this, it appears that they have split their 4^th place National Schools’ crew into two fours thus allowing for two extremely strong boats – doubling their chances.

Kingston Grammar School

KGS have had an excellent sculling season with their Champ Girls quad finishing 4^th at National Schools’ and making the quarter-finals at Henley Women’s Regatta. However, we have yet to see them perform on the sweeping side of things. It is interesting that they have made this pivot so close to the event – perhaps medal hunting in the final races of the season? We will soon find out how effectively they have made the switch and if they can compete with some of the top Scottish clubs and schools.

Glasgow Academy

If anyone can split the ASRA crews, it will be Glasgow Academy. Finishing 2^nd in this category at the Scottish Junior Championships last month, it will likely be a close battle between the two crews for dominance. In addition, this crew won the Henley Women’s J18 4+ category demonstrating clear speed against a tough draw. With the home crowd advantage at Strathclyde Park, I’m sure that Glasgow will have an impressive race.

Predictions
Overall, I’m predicting an ASRA win with Glasgow Academy behind them. With the strength of this boat at National Schools’ Regatta, I have no doubt that they will have another good race and go home with some silverware. Glasgow will likely take the second place medals, following on from the results of the Scottish Championships.