The championship fours at the Head of The Charles is comprised mostly of college crews, usually from either the Varsity or junior Varsity. This year, in addition to the college crews, there is a US entry, an Italian entry and a composite crew of the bronze medallist double and pair from the last Olympic Games. It will be fascinating to see how these top level crews square off, as well as seeing which collegiate programs emerge as early leaders before the spring season.
USRowing
This crew, comprised of Evan Olson from the Olympic eight, Jacob Plihal from the US single, and two Olympic spares in Kai Hoite and Alex Hedge, will be looking to put down a strong performance in front of a crowd. USRowing had a historic Olympic performance, claiming its first gold medal in 20 years and first in 64 years in the coxless four, whilst also netting a bronze in the eight. These four athletes will be looking to compete at LA in 2028 and this marks an important first step in the process.
See-Klub Keusnacht
This boat is likely to be the favourite to win outright. Littered with top Olympic calibre rowers, the crew comprises the Swiss pair at stern and the Irish double at bow. The Yale rowing chemistry between Daire Lynch and Andrin Guilich will power this crew down the course. It is hard to see any crews holding this boat off, but the Americans and the Italians will be looking to give them a good go of it.
Princeton University
The holders in this event, Princeton, will be looking to go from strength to strength after a strong campaign at the end of last season. The boat, which will likely be the top half of the Princeton JV which earned a silver medal at IRAs before making the final of The Temple Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta, will be the first boat to set out and enjoy cleaner better water as a result. The question will be how Princeton react to losing key figures in the top boats like U23 silver medalist Keelan Good and Marco Miasi.
University of Washington
Washington is obviously a strong contender in any event it enters. After sweeping the IRAs last year, it will be interesting to see how and if they can follow up on such an impressive performance. The boat comprises first-rate talent, stroked by previous U23 American eight-stroke Ian Burnett, who was a perennial feature of the Brown Varsity before going to Washington for a postgrad. Harry Fitzpatrick, sat at three, is also an IRA 1V winner. Washington will suffer from starting towards the back of the pack, and it will be interesting to see how their high-rate style fits a long race in a heavy boat class.
University of Pennsylvania
Penn is a program that is on the upswing and will be looking to continue rolling forward at the Charles. After finding real success in the Varsity last year, Al Monte’s program will be looking to find more success in the lower boats. The Penn 2V inched past the Georgetown Varsity last weekend, suggesting that they are managing to translate their top-end speed through the program. It will be exciting to watch the rematch of the two narrowly separated teams again on Sunday.
Dartmouth University
The Dartmouth JV, which medalled at IRAs last year, will be looking to compete for a medal on Sunday. Starting towards the back of the pack, it will be difficult for them to row their best race in the puddles of the crews before them, but winning this event is not entirely new to the big Green, who have historically done well at the Charles. It will be interesting to see how the program fares this year, as the fifth-year Covid athletes, who had bolstered their roster for a long time, have started to peter out.
Prediction
All in all, it is hard to see anyone beating SKC. They have a lineup that does not seem possible to match for any of the other crews. The Italian group from Gruppo Nautico Fiamme Gialle have not announced their lineup as of the date of writing this, but they simply cannot field a boat with as many Olympic sweep medals as SKC contains. On the collegiate side, it will be exciting to see Princeton and Washington do battle. The positional advantage of Princeton may prove too much for Washington to overcome, but it would be foolish to rule out Dartmouth or Penn, both crews which contain serious talent.
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