We have reached the summit. As a rowing community, there are few weeks in the calendar that we collectively look forward to more than Henley Royal Regatta. The unique match-racing style format, the frivolity and festival unfolding on the banks alongside a pomp and circumstance that transports the punter back through the pages of time itself. All of this is secondary though to the curvature of competition that angles upwards as the week unfolds. From heats on the Tuesday to finals on the Sunday, all roads lead to the red box. JRN will be with you every step of the way to provide the most comprehensive coverage of the Regatta available anywhere in the world – and we start with our exclusive set of event previews. Roll on the racing.
Entries: 16 (to be reduced to 10 by Qualifying races)
The last French victory in an open event event came in the Doubles in 2014 (a memorable victory by lightweights Stany Delayre and Jeremie Azou, beating the heavyweight British crew of John Collins and Jonny Walton by three feet). Emma Cornelis and Josephine Cornut-Danjou (Club France) will probably start as marginal favourites to deliver France’s first Henley win in a decade. The pair narrowly missed qualification for their home Olympics after finishing fourth at the Final Olympic Qualifying Regatta. They raced at the Poznan World Rowing Cup this season, placing fifth (France’s best result in the W2- since 2017). Cornut was an U23 last season, placing third in the pair at the U23 world championships, whilst Cornelis placed 19th in the pair at the senior equivalent.
One of the main challengers for the French will be Eliza Gaffney and Samantha Morton (Rowing Australia). They are part of the Australian “Project LA” development squad and raced in both the eight and pair at the Poznan World Rowing Cup (winning silver in the W8). Gaffney rowed in the pair at the 2022 world championships, finishing ninth. Morton won gold at the U23 world championships in 2022 and made her senior debut this season. Gaffney was defeated in the quarter-finals of this event last year by eventual Brew and Edwards.
Another crew who narrowly missed out on Olympic qualification were Hannah Reif and Lena Sarassa (Frankfurter Rudergesellschaft Germania 1869 e.V. and Crefelder Ruderclub 1883 e.V., Germany). They have been racing together as a pair since their U23 days, when they picked up a bronze at the 2021 U23 world championships. On the senior circuit, their best result came at the European championships this season where they reached the A-Final (the best result by a German W2- since the Poznan World Cup of 2016).
The best hopes for a home victory rest on the shoulders of Amelia Standing and Juliette Perry (Leander Club). They are both members of the British development squad and raced in the four at the Poznan World Rowing Cup, finishing in a solid fifth place. They won the Redgrave Challenge Vase at Henley Women’s Regatta yesterday to secure their second HWR title in two years after winning the four in 2023. In 2023, they doubled up in the pair and four and, whilst this gave them invaluable racing experience, it was a decision that arguably backfired. Having already contested a brutal race in the four that morning, they were overcome by eventual winners, Brew and Edwards, in the final few hundred metres of their pairs semi-final. This loss will still be fresh in the memory and this crew will want to right the wrongs from last time round.
Another strong British contender are Emilia Campbell and Phoebe Campbell (Thames Rowing Club). They won the Pairs Head earlier this season and also won on both days at the Metropolitan Regatta. They lost out to Perry and Standing in the final of championship pairs at Henley Women’s Regatta last weekend and it is clear that Henley Royal has been a target all year. Campbell had a stellar junior and U23 career, culminating in winning a silver medal in the coxless fours at the U23 world championships in 2022. Having taken a sabbatical from racing last year, she looks to now be thriving at Thames. Crocker excelled last season, winning the Wargrave as part of a dominant Thames crew.
The strongest contenders of the four North American entries will most likely be Alexis Cronk and Kirsten Edwards (Rowing Canada). They were both members of the Canadian eight that won world championship bronze in 2022 and then placed fifth in 2023. They both won the Remenham Challenge Cup in 2023 and have experience in the pair together, racing at the U23 world championships in 2021 and placing fifth.
The second North American entry are Katherin Kelly and Eva Frohnhofer (University of Virginia, USA). They were both members of the Virginia Varsity crew that finished second at the ACC Championships this year.
Another US Collegiate pair is Adeline Newman and Tessa Griffin (Trinity College, Hartford, USA). Both have just finished their freshman years at Hartford and were in the Varsity eight that won bronze in the DivIII category at the NCAA’s.
The final North American entry is a composite with Phoebe Robinson and Sarah Tisdall (University of Texas, USA and Thames Rowing Club). They are both originally from Brisbane and Robinson won bronze in the BW4- at the 2023 U23 world championships. At Texas, she rowed in the Varsity eight that won at the San Diego Crew Classic. Tisdall is a graduate of Harvard where she raced in the 2V at the Ivy League Championships and after leaving Harvard went to Cambridge where she stroked the 2021 Blue Boat. This year, she was selected to represent Australia at the opening World Rowing Cup, racing in both the four and the eight.
The final overseas entry are the Fürholz sisters, Andrea and Seraina (Belvoir Ruderclub Zürich, Switzerland). Older sister Andrea finished fourth in the BW4X at the 2019 U23 world championships. Seraina raced on the Swiss U23 team from 2021-2023, placing tenth in the BW2X in 2021, seventh in the BW2- in 2022 and tenth in the BW4X last season. The weekend prior to Henley Royal will see them race at the Swiss Championships, where they have won multiple national titles in several different boat categories previously, including the pair.
Prediction
This could be a really close contest between the French, Australians and Leander. I’m going for a French victory.
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