Following last year’s cancellation due to weather, the anticipation is tangible from crews waiting to take to the Tideway. Being one of the earlier events in the season, there isn’t a lot of information on this season’s crews available as of now, but if last year’s performances are anything to go by, this event is likely to be a close shave to steal a first place finish.
University of London Boat Club
With two crews entered, University of London Boat Club are the first crews lining up to take on these
Academic Coxless Fours. Taking to home water, the club will be hoping for a repeat of their winning
performance from the last Fours Head taking place in 2022. ULBC have continued to produce highly
successful performances from their women’s squad across the levels, including some of the athletes
returning to crews for this event: Tashi Spence, Ella Tarczy and Ellen Grimes are amongst those making up the fours, all of whom were part of the club’s Henley Royal Regatta qualifiers for the Island Challenge Cup ‘B’ crew in last year’s event. No doubt ULBC will have their eyes set on retaining their title for another year, and if last season is anything to go by, they are likely more than prepared to do so.
University of Bristol Boat Club
Another one to watch will be University of Bristol Boat Club, whose women’s squad is coming off the
back of one of their best years yet. Last season, they secured the club’s first qualification to Henley Royal
Regatta with their Island Challenge Cup eight, as well as achieving success across the board at
Metropolitan and BUCS Regatta. Bristol University will be looking to ride that momentum in this event,
to make a strong start to this season of racing.
Cambridge University Boat Club
The crew from Cambridge University Boat Club is also a mix of new and familiar faces, with notable
returns from Maddie Jackson and Margo Faguet joining Sharp and Pezier to form CUBC’s only entry
for this category. As Lightweight Women’s President, Jackson represented the club as part of its Lightweight Boat Race crew as well as competing across a range of Intermediate events at BUCS Regatta, highlights including finishing fourth overall for the Intermediate Lightweight Coxless Quadruple Sculls and 12th in the Intermediate Eights. Faguet also competed in the Intermediate Eights, placing fourth in the D Final. With just one crew, CUBC will be keen to see where they match up in this talented lineup for this event.
Predictions
With the event cancellation last year and so much progression shown from all of these clubs towards the
end of last season, it’s hard to make too confident a prediction. ULBC are likely to be tough to beat given
their consistent standard of performance, however I would like to see if Bristol University can ride the
wave of last season to start strong, and see where they can land themselves in the standings.
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