Durham Regatta is held over a 700m and 1800m course on the picturesque River Wear. With racing on both Saturday and Sunday, there is double the opportunity for athletes to get plenty of racing experience. This year sees a strong turn out of clubs and athletes, there will be some very tight and very competitive racing ahead.
Singles
Over the two days we see both Lambton RC’s Natasha Wearmouth and Leeds RC’s Holly Bentley. Holly recently raced at the Metropolitan regatta and came fifth in the C final on both days. On Saturday we see Isabelle Wilson who recently came third in the Novice single at Scottish Spring Regatta racing for Sunderland City RC. For Tees RC on Saturday it is Sefi Ormston, a junior who recently won the junior category at the GB Beach Sprints in Scotland. However on Sunday, we see Town racing for Tees RC. On Sunday, Molly Rippon will be racing for the University of York and at BUCs regatta in May she came fourth in the G final for the intermediate single. The Durham University sculler is Sophie Parkes, who recently came sixth in the B final of the intermediate single at BUCS regatta.
Doubles and Pairs
The pairs entered are Leeds University RC, Sheffield City RC, Tyne Amateur RC, and Butler college BC. They are racing late on Saturday whereas the doubles are racing on Sunday. A total of four crews are entered, Durham University BC, Tyne Amateur RC, Leeds University and Leeds RC composite, and Durham School. The Leeds composite will most likely be a high performance athlete boat and there is also the potential that Holly Bentley from the single will be doubling up. Similar personnel might be racing on both days, however I would say Butler College BC, Durham University and Durham School will have the local knowledge of the stream and bends of the river that will give them the upper hand.
Coxed fours – Elite and Championship
There is a much smaller turn out for this category on the Sunday with only four crews entered as compared to the six crews of Saturday. On Saturday a lot of Durham colleges will be going head to head: St John’s College, St Hild & St Bede, Hatfield College, and Van Mildert BC. Also to add to the mix is a Durham University BC crew. First up against Durham University is Lancaster University who have been taking part in plenty of racing this season already such as Hexham regatta.
Quadruple sculls – Elite and Championship
A big line up in this category, we again have similar crews over the two days: Leeds University BC, Sheffield City, Durham University BC, and Tees RC. On Saturday we also have Yarm School, and Hexham RC. Hexham having recently held their own regatta will be very used to the fast paced racing these smaller regattas bring. On Sunday we also have Durham Amateur RC, Tyne Amateur RC, and York University. This category should provide spectators with some great races as there is a range of crews from different backgrounds, and we will see who comes out on top this weekend.
Eights – Elite ‘A’ and Championship
All eyes will be on these eight events over this weekend, with some classic rivalries on display. On Saturday in the Elite A Eights, Durham University BC go head to head against St Hild & St Bede college, to which the winner progresses on to battle it out against Leeds University in the final. On Sunday we see Newcastle University BC joining the mix. Two of their crews are in the semi-finals, finding out who they are racing against on the day as racing progresses. Also racing on Sunday is York University, Durham University BC, and Tyne Amateur RC. Tyne and Newcastle share common waters, and a lot of Newcastle alumni find their way to Tyne Amateur RC. Also to add to this, Newcastle and Durham are varsity rivals who often take part in side by side racing. Given the high caliber of these crews, it will make for very competitive racing.
Predictions
For all events I think the crews are very evenly matched, which makes the days racing even more exciting. I think Durham based crews will have an upper hand of it being home water however, Tyne Amateur, York University and Sheffield City all have plenty of entires showing depth within their squads. Leeds based crews also have a large number of athletes racing and have been performing well this season. Newcastle University in the eights will be hard to beat. Best of luck ladies!
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