Ladies and Gentlemen, the time is nearly upon us. That time in summer when the eyes of the rowing world descend upon the small Oxfordshire town of Henley for a week of racing in which victory is prized above all but the Olympic games. World champions, scullers, schoolboys, schoolgirls, university rowers, club rowers, and Olympic medalists will all be in attendance.
It has many names, including Henley Royal Regatta, and Henley Royal. But to most, it is known by the simple one word: Henley. The Britannia Challenge Cup is a fairly young competition by the standards of the regatta, having been instituted in 1968 as the Henley Prize, with the name change coming a year later.
With the exception of Thames Rowing Club (who won in 2018 and 2022), for the past decade, no club has won the event more than once, with many victors coming from non-British clubs. In theory, any of the 16 boats could win it, but in reality, it will likely come down to a few hotshots, that can rise above the rest and bring some glory back to their home clubs.
Thames RC
The normal rules of rowing do not seem to apply to Thames. They are, after all, the only club that has won the Brit more than twice in the last decade. Last year’s victory was particularly impressive, given that the crew comprised 50% of their second eight, and had gone from first to last at Marlow the previous week. Having won three events at last year’s regatta, Head Coach Sander Smulders will hope that this year’s incarnation will function much the same.
At bow is former University of Surrey rower Alex Law, with Joseph White at two, Tom Walton at three, and Tyler Amos at the stroke with Charlotte Fuscone as cox. Thames, and clubs like it, have an uncanny ability to churn out rowers with near-perfect technique and eye-watering 2k scores. But as the old adage goes, “erg’s don’t float”, and many powerful crews have fallen short at this exact stage many times before.
Thames were second at the Metropolitan Regatta in Open Coxed Fours, where they were beaten by Molesey, before coming third in one of the tightest finals that Marlow Regatta has likely ever seen, with Imperial College 0.6 seconds above Thames and London Rowing Club 0.7 seconds below. It may have been a tight victory, but it’s a victory. Thames has now been on both sides of the winning margin at Met and Marlow, demonstrating the malleable nature of race day. The bottom line is as follows – Thames have a very real chance of raising the Brit for the second time in as many years.
London RC
Occupying the exact same stretch of the Putney embankment as Thames RC, London has often enjoyed a rivalry with their neighbours in black and red. Having arguably been a rather lopsided one for the past few years, London have come roaring back in the last 24 months, with a particular highlight being last year’s Brit final, which was London’s first at Henley in a decade.
Having looked in imperious form this season, revenge will be the order of the day. First place at the Met was followed by an incredibly tight fourth-place at Marlow, where London was just 0.7 behind Thames. Three of the current crew – Ed Thomas, Matt Reeder and Calum Jenkins – were in the boat last year as was cox Rosie Margolis. Margolis was part of the Edinburgh 2016 Prince Albert crew that brought the first-ever victory to a Scottish University at Henley, and has guided the Lost Boys to an impressive season. London are no longer in the shadows of Thames, at least in this event.
Sydney RC
Moving away from British shores to the land down under, Sydney Rowing Club are the international crew that is most likely to challenge British supremacy in the Brit. The immense cost of moving a club crew to Henley for a week means that when boats do come, one can be assured that they are reasonably fast.
Sydney raced at Marlow, finishing far behind the top three in time and pushing Molesey into sixth by 1.3 seconds which both shows that Sydney can still perform at the top but also that the crew may be missing those tight margins that can get them to the win.
The crew of 2023 contains an extraordinary amount of domestic success within each its four rowers. Declan Glendinning at bow won two medals at the recent Australian Championship, including gold in the U23 M4- and gold in the M8+ as did his bow pair partner Thomas Hart. The stroke pair of Rory Menzies and Alex Hoskin have four NSW Championship Medals between them, with Menzies winning GPS Head of the River last year with the Kings School Paramatta, before making a spirited run in the Princess Elizabeth Cup. With cox Mietta Jones having won two medals herself at this year’s Australian Rowing Championships, it’s quite possible that this is one of the most successful crews, in terms of what they’ve won between them, that Sydney has ever sent to Henley. Sydney also has the distinction of being one of the four foreign crews that have won the Brit in the previous decade, having beaten Thames to it in 2015.
Molesey BC
The famous black and white of Molesey was in full effect at HRR 2022, as the Thames Cup came back for the first time in six years. Like all of the crews covered thus far bar London, Molesey have won the Brit in the last decade, with that victory coming against Mercantile RC in 2019. Despite not having quite the same sucess as Thames in previous years, Molesey are still a powerhouse in British rowing, and a race against them should not be taken lightly.
Having exited the Brit in the first round last year against the Thames crew that went on to win the event, and finishing 15 seconds off the pace in the A final of Championship Coxed Fours at Marlow, Molesey have a mountain to climb in order to convince detractors that they have the ability to perform on the day against the likes of London, Thames, and Sydney. The crew of Toby Tegg, Tom Rimmer, Ryan Notter, and Phillip Kaufman are a strong crew: their results alone prove that, but to reach the apex and win the Brit, they will need to pull more out of the bag than they’ve shown as of late.
Marlow RC
Marlow has always been a hallmark of quality sculling in British rowing. In terms of sweep, they have had modest success at best, with highlights including a win in the Hambleden Pairs in 2018. The class of 2023 has continued the club’s foray into sweep rowing with some results that put Marlow firmly in the frame as a potential dark horse.
Second and third on both days of the Metropolitan Regatta in Championship Coxed Fours to add to their recent showing at Marlow Regatta illustrates that they are well in the mix for a good run in the Brit this year. Given the strength of the field, it’s unlikely that Marlow will walk away with the overall victory but they should perform well and may even be the surprise package of the event.
Prediction
On their day, there are several crews that could make the weekend of the Brit this year, which is a testament to the strength of club rowing, not just in the UK but around the world. I’m going to be bold and predict a repeat of last year’s final between London and Thames, but with London taking the chequered flag on this occasion. In terms of the crews making the weekend, Sydney, Molesey, and Marlow will all be in the hunt.
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