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: 20 (to be reduced to 10 by Qualifying Races)
Strong favourites in this event will be Nikki Van Sprang and Guillaume Krommenhoek (Hollandia Roeiclub, Netherlands). This duo won the B-Final in Tokyo and were both in the eight that won world championship silver in 2022. Last season, Van Sprang helped the coxless four qualify for Paris with a fourth place and Krommenhoek did the same for the eight, picking up another world championship silver. This season, they raced at the Europeans, finishing in a solid fifth place. They were one of the strong favourites to qualify the boat for Paris at the Final Olympic Qualifying Regatta, but surprisingly they were outsprinted by the Lithuania Stankunas brothers who beat them to the all-important second place by just 3/tenth of a second. Victory at Henley will be a small consolation prize after missing out on the Olympics. The Netherlands has a second entry in this event, Isak Verkaik and Jasper Joordans (Amsterdamsche Studenten Roeivereeniging Nereus, Netherlands). They are both members of the Dutch development squad and raced as the fourth Dutch coxless four at the opening World Rowing Cup of the 2022 season. This season, they took victory in the pair at the Holland Beker.
Another pair of athletes who are looking for some consolation after missing Olympic qualification are Matte Grossmann and Marc Kammann (Ruder-Club Favorite Hammonia Hamburg and Der Hamburger und Germania Ruder Club, Germany). Grossmann was in the four that finished one place off qualification at the FOQR. He also raced in this boat class at the 2023 world championships (finishing 16th) and this season placed fourth at the Varese World Rowing Cup and then sixth in Poznan. Kammann was in the eight that qualified for the Paris Olympics with a fifth place at the 2023 world championships. After missing out on selection for the eight in Paris, he raced in the pair with Mark Hinrichs, placing 12th at the Europeans. He was back in the eight for Lucerne but then dropped into the four in Poznan.
Germany has two other entries in this event, starting with Rene Schmela and Theis Hagemeister (Berliner Ruderclub and Frankfurter Rudergesellschaft Germania 1869 e.V., Germany). Schmela was a member of the German senior team from 2018 to 2021, placing tenth in the pair at the European championships in 2021. Hagemeister was a member of the four in 2022 and 2023. The third German entry are the Djekovic brothers, Lirion and Ledian (Mündener Ruderverein, Germany). They are part of the German U23 sqquad and raced in the pair at Ghent, finishing 11th.
Surprisingly Australia hasn’t won the Goblets since 1976 (Luxford and Shinners of Sydney University beat Lecky and Crooker of Canada in the final….in case you were interested). Their crew for this year, Rowan Lavery and Jackson Kench (Rowing Australia, Australia) may well be the strongest challengers to the Dutch. They were both in the Australian eight that won world championship bronze last year. With Australia shuffling their men’s eight around, they miss out on a seat in the Olympic boat. They raced together as a pair at the second and third World Rowing Cups, finishing eighth in Lucerne and sixth in Poznan.
Ireland’s best result in the Goblets was from Neptune Rowing Club, who were losing finalists in 1985. This year, the pairing of Jack Dorney and John Kearney (Shandon Boat Club and University College, Cork, Ireland) stand a very good chance of emulating, if not exceeding, that result. They were in the Irish four at both the 2022 and 2023 world championships and, as U23’s, both won silver in the BM4- at the 2021 U23 world championships. This season, after racing in the four at the Varese World Rowing Cup, they moved into the pair and placed eighth in Poznan.
Denmark also has two athletes from their M4- that missed Olympic qualification at the FOQR in Magnus Valbirk and Kaare Mortenson (Danmarks Rocenter, Denmark). They have been racing together in the four since 2022 and also raced together in the pair once at the Lucerne World Rowing Cup last year, placing 11th.
The final overseas entry in the event are Ryan Smith and Ethan Blight (University of Washington, U.S.A.) As is often the case with US collegiate crews, they may be representing an American University, but neither of them is an American. Smith (despite a distinctly un-Germanic name) is a former German U23 and raced for them at the 2021 and 2022 U23 world championships. He rowed in the UW Prince Albert crew that made the final last season and this year was a member of the Husky’s 2V. Blight is a Kiwi who has also represented his country at U23 level and, like Smith, was in the Prince Albert coxed four last year. As a Grad student, he raced in the UW 2V this season.
Amongst the home nation entries, the strongest contenders are likely to be Jack Cadwallader and Adam Von Bismarck (London Rowing Club). Winners of championships pairs at Marlow Regatta last weekend, they are both currently students at Brown University in the USA. Cadwallader (formerly of Windsor Boys) is a freshman and former Henley finalist in the Fawley Challenge Cup. He also won silver for Great Britian at the junior world championships. This season, he raced in the Varsity coxed four at the IRA’s. Von Bismarck is a junior at Brown and attended Westminster School. He rowed for GB at the European U23 championships and was in the Brown 2V at the IRA’s.
Second at Marlow Regatta was Charles Cartisser and Barnaby Russell (Thames Rowing Club). Like their London Rowing Club opponents, they are also both currently studying in the USA at Columbia University. Cartisser was a school mate of Von Bismarck’s at Westminster, and Russell went to St.Paul’s. At the IRA’s this year, Russell was in the Columbia 2V and Cartisser was in the 1V.
Meanwhile, the crew of Tom Rigney and Tassilo von Mueller (Oxford University) withdrew from Marlow Regatta after the draw. Von Mueller was President of Oxford University in 2023 and raced in the Blue Boat that year. He won U23 world championship bronze as part of the German BM8 in 2021. Rigney was part of the Isis crew in 2023.
Fourth at Marlow Regatta were the lightweight pairing of Lewis Nixon and Alex Currie (Oxford Brookes University). They won silver in the intermediate LM2- at BUCS and also took fourth at the Metropolitan Regatta.
Prediction
I think this is going to be a Hollandia v Australia final, with the title going to the men in Orange.
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