Kingston Small Boats Head provides a valuable opportunity for crews to test their speed along the 5200m downstream course amid the demands of winter training. With the 2023 event cancelled due to strong river flow, a threat that also loomed large this year, the green light for this year’s event will have motivated these crews to seize the opportunity to showcase their progress in a season which is still relatively young. The senior women’s quads category appears to feature a mix of junior girls competing at this higher level, creating excitement around who will rise to the challenge.
Surbiton High School Boat Club
Surbiton has entered two quads in this category, represented by Sinclair and Reincecke. Recent years have presented mixed results for Surbiton’s senior sculling, with the club’s focus seemingly remaining on its championship women’s eight at National Schools’ Regatta this year, where they secured a respectable eighth place. Although they did not enter a championship quad to counter this at the National Schools’ Regatta, one Surbiton rower did place second in the B-Final of championship singles, which could hint at aspirational sculling potential within the upper end of the club. Despite an early exit to Lea Rowing Club in The Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup this year, Surbiton rarely drops in the ranks for long. With a new season and quite possibly a fresh crew line-up of star scullers, Surbiton may well draw inspiration from former squad member Lola Anderson, who recently won Olympic gold in the quad for Great Britain.
Shiplake College Boat Club
Shiplake College has a history of sculling success and has also entered two boats in this event: Foreman and Sullivan. Shiplake appears to consistently balance achievements in both sculling and sweep throughout the year. Comparably, their women’s championship eight achieved a fifth-placed finish at National Schools’ Regatta, which earned them a pre-qualification spot at Henley Royal Regatta. With Sophia Foreman in this crew, the prospects look very promising for the Foreman quad in particular at Kingston Small Boats Head. We have also seen Shiplake edge Surbiton out of the running in the past, when Shiplake’s junior women’s quad achieved a top-ten finish at Henley Women’s Regatta, one place above Surbiton; will the tables turn in this head race season? Shiplake’s 2021 Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup victory further indicates the club’s unrelenting quad legacy, and despite a loss to Canada’s E.L. Crossley School at Henley Royal Regatta this year, Shiplake will be working hard at events like these to ensure this does not happen again.
Kingston Rowing Club
Kingston’s senior squad appears to show a growing strength in sculling rather than a history of podium finishes in comparison to their more seasoned competitors in this event, but this is something they will be looking to challenge on their home stretch. At this year’s National Schools’ Regatta, Kingston placed fifth in the C-Final for J16 quads and fourth in the D-Final for championship quads, immediately symbolising the development of quad-racing expertise in their senior squad, and this event could be a continuation of that. Kingston also secured wins in both the C- and B-Finals of championship singles, demonstrating their commitment to sculling success in other boats and perhaps signalling a dedication to expanding this across the squad more widely in the years to come. Led by Cole, Kingston’s crew is poised to show their continuing progress this weekend.
Kingston Grammar School Boat Club
Also competing on their home stretch against a home rival, Kingston Grammar School (KGS) has similarly increased its focus on sculling, entering a junior quad into Henley Women’s Regatta this summer. Although both Surbiton and Shiplake beat KGS in that event, KGS will view Kingston Small Boats Head as an opportunity to work towards overturning this. Their third-place finish in the B-Final of championship women’s eights at National Schools’ Regatta marks a notable improvement for the senior squad generally — one of their best outcomes in recent years, so it will be interesting to see if any of these girls feature in this quad crew under the name of Harper. Again, KGS boasts an inspirational figure in alumna Lily Abbott, who obtained a bronze medal in the Great Britain quad at the U23 World Rowing Championships this summer.
Wallingford Rowing Club
Wallingford is renowned as one of the most competitive club programs, often outperforming school teams, like those mentioned above, with greater resources. Among the few clubs to prequalify an eight for Henley Royal Regatta, Wallingford also clinched the junior eight title at the British Rowing Junior Championships. Therefore, whilst they are now known for their speed in bigger boats, Wallingford now faces the challenge of transferring their skills from sweep to sculling. The intention is clearly there, as they entered a quad at Schools’ Head earlier this year. After the cancellation of their own Wallingford Long Distance Sculls event a few weeks ago, they will be eager to make their mark at Kingston.
Prediction
While Kingston Rowing Club, Kingston Grammar School, and Wallingford Rowing Club have all demonstrated growth and success in sculling boats in recent years, it seems unlikely they will be able to surpass the consistently strong results from Shiplake and Surbiton this time. With the season still early and with limited knowledge of each crew member, predicting a definitive finishing order is challenging. However, I believe Shiplake is favoured to lead, intending to maintain their quad legacy wherever possible, with the Surbiton crews likely capturing the remaining podium places, mirroring the close finishes which we have become accustomed to.
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