The first weekend in November brings about the first step of the GB trials process for this season. Consisting of a 2km erg test, followed by a 5km water assessment, it is the first chance for hopefuls to demonstrate what they are capable of.
In terms of U23 sweep, the men’s squad have a lot to live up to. After winning the Men’s Eight and both the Coxed and Coxless Fours in Varese this summer, there is a very high bar set for those hoping to fill those seats this year. In terms of trying to pick out the standouts from the list of those who have registered to trial, the obvious names would be returners from last summer.
Oliver Parish & Luca Ferraro (Cambridge University BC)
Oliver Parish and Luca Ferraro made up the Men’s Pair from the Worlds team last year and will look to combine spearheading Cambridge’s Boat Race challenge with repeating their selection and improving on their solid A final placing from Varese.
Jake Wincomb, Toby Lassen & Louis Nares (Oxford Brookes University BC)
Oxford Brookes University come off the back of a record-breaking campaign from their student body, where they made history by winning the Temple and Prince Albert Challenge Cups at Henley Royal Regatta. Jake Wincomb was part of the U23 Men’s Eight last year, and Henley winners Toby Lassen and Louis Nares will be looking to make the step up from the Europeans to the Worlds team for this year. Add to this a whole raft of Henley winners and you can be sure there will be a significant Brookes presence towards the sharp end of the U23 picture.
James Forward (Oxford University BC)
Other established names on the university scene have names competing; James Forward from Oxford University will be looking to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Felix Drinkall, Tobias Schroder and Henry Pearson to U23 gold.
Others
Temple semi-finalists last year, Durham University have a large contingent heading to Boston this year, with the leadership of Rob Dauncey and Will Fletcher being a vital asset in terms of the experience they have from their prior involvement with the GB rowing team.
Clubs such as UL, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Bristol will all be sending athletes looking to make their mark not only to their fellow club-mates, but also as they look to establish themselves on the U23 picture, with many still classing as U21.
Prediction
The November trial is just the first step in a multi-faceted selection process leading to summer racing. For returners, it is about setting out their stall for the year and identifying themselves as key names going forward, for others it will be about gaining experience racing at the highest level, which will put them in good stead in years to come. Nevertheless, this weekend, as ever, should see high quality racing from the best young athletes in the country.
I’ll go for the Cambridge pair of Parish and Ferraro to win this trial in the pair owing to experience and time together, beyond that, it’s all to play for.
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