The premier event for coxless fours at Henley Women’s Regatta, the Avril Vellacott Cup provides racing for crews who have international experience or have recently won a prestigious domestic event. This year’s event has entries from across the top levels of British Rowing with crews from Leander, high-level domestic University squads and some Remenham clubs facing off against a few boats from the American Collegiate Scene. We will be sure to be treated to some high level racing up the 1500 metre course.
Leander Club
The home to many of the UK’s finest rowing talent outside the national team, Leander Club colours are also worn by many of those who are on the National Team Squad. The pink palace is boating two crews in this event and both will be looking to progress deep into the weekend. The ‘A’ crew has a phenomenal amount of talent on board. Highlighted calibre includes an Oxford Blue, a gold medalist in the coxless four at the 2021 U23 World Rowing Championships and another who has done both. This crew has a level of talent such that it would not surprise me if they were National Team athletes who train at Caversham given at least one of the boat was in the National Team Eight that won the Women’s Eights Head of the River.
Durham University Boat Club
In terms of previous results in the Regatta Season, there is not much this Durham University Boat Club crew could have done to improve upon it. This combination took the crown in the Championship Coxed Four at BUCS Regatta ahead of a stacked field of entrees. Later in the season they moved into the coxless four and showed no signs of slowing down taking home comfortable wins on both days of racing at the Metropolitan Regatta. So far this season they have had the answer to every question asked of them and will be looking to continue that in the gladiatorial duals on the Henley Course.
London Rowing Club
Another crew with a strong looking form book is that of London Rowing Club. They have been growing in speed through the season as a fourth placed finish on the Saturday of Wallingford Regatta was followed by a second place on the Sunday of Metropolitan Regatta. They will be looking to carry this momentum away from the confines of Dorney Lake and onto the Henley stretch as this likely will be the priority boat from this Putney club.
Newcastle University/Tyne Rowing Club
One of the more unusual entries in this event comes from the north-east of England where there are two boats entered, each a composite of athletes from Newcastle University and Tyne RC. These clubs, more to accustomed to facing off against each other from their boathouses across the river, have been combining this year to put together fast crews. This has been successful as on Saturday’s time trial at the Metropolitan Regatta they posted the second fastest time, but they did not start the A Final. While that robbed us of an opportunity to see their side-by-side speed, they clearly have horsepower. This combination will only grow in speed as they get more opportunity to row together.
Aberdeen Schools/George Heriot’s School/Strathclyde Park Rowing Club
This four from north of the border is filled with an interesting group of athletes. Zoe Beeson of Aberdeen Schools Rowing Association has spent the last nine months rowing at Yale University. Morven Thomson, a Glasgow Academy product has been at Duke University and Isla Wilding has been rowing in the Brown University first boat. They are joined by Amy Newton who is still at George Heriot’s School but will be heading out to the University of Michigan in September. This is a talented group with all four having represented GB at a junior level last summer and having five National Schools’ Regatta Gold Medals and two of the group having won in the Junior Four in this event previously. It will be interesting to see how effectively they will be able to come together as a crew in the short time since they returned to the UK.
University of Pennsylvania
After a program-best finish at the NCAA National Championship, the women’s rowing team of the University of Pennsylvania are headed across the Atlantic. They have two eights, a quad and a four entered into this regatta with this boat being from the coxed four that raced at the NCAA Championship. This four didn’t experience the successes of their eights but have further opportunity to improve with this extension of their season through to the end of June.
University of Georgetown
The other US University entered this event is the University of Georgetown. This crew is made up from athletes that finished the American domestic season in the second eight. That boat placed fourth at the Patriot League and fourteenth at the Women’s Eastern Sprints two weeks previously. This event provides the squad an opportunity to work together as a team for one more month together and for this young crew to move on in their development.
Predictions
This event has never been won by an international crew and despite the level of talent coming across from the United States I don’t see that changing this year. The elite talent in the Leander Club ‘A’ will likely see them take the crown with Durham University and the Newcastle University and Tyne RC composite being my pick for their closest challengers.
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