The final run out for racing crews before they take to the iconic Henley booms, Marlow Regatta always produces fast and exciting racing as programmes all over the country begin to finalise Henley Royal Regatta formations. This year’s Championship Quad, with crews asserting themselves in preparation to battle it out for the Prince of Wales Challenge Cup, will be no exception.
Leander Club
The undisputed power house of British men’s sculling in recent years, Leander will be looking to place one hand on this iconic trophy this weekend. They won the Prince of Wales Challenge Cup at Henley last year, and took the win in the Championship Quads at both Wallingford and Metropolitan Regatta earlier this summer. With previous Henley winners in the boat such as Bryn Ellery, Oliver Costley and Rory Harris, this unit is no stranger to winning and will be firm favourites to take the win in this event this weekend.
Reading University BC ‘A’
The only university programme that focusses exclusively on sculling, Reading are known from producing fast men’s quads year after year. They picked up a win at Fours Head back in November as well as winning BUCS Head in the Men’s Championship Quad category. This crew also took a close silver at BUCS Regatta as well as a second-place finish at Met behind a Junior World Championships composite quad. These athletes are clearly gelling well and will be looking to establish themselves as a top crew heading into Henley Royal Regatta.
The Windsor Boys’ School BC
Fresh off the back of winning the Championship Quad event at the National Schools’ Regatta, Windsor Boys’ eyes will now be firmly fixed on winning the Fawley Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta. They came incredibly close last year but were ultimately beaten by Tideway Scullers in a thrilling final. Whereas this year has been a different story, they are clear favourites for the event after dominating both Fours Head and Schools’ Head. They took the gold at National Schools’ while their top athlete was racing in the single and will be looking to complete the triple by lifting the Fawley Challenge Cup in less than three weeks’ time. Once again, this weekend Windsor don’t have their top sculler, Marcus Chute, racing with them however with so much depth I would still expect them to put in an impressive performance.
Hartpury College & University BC
Another programme known for putting a lot of its resources into men’s sculling, Hartpury will be looking to get into the mix in the sharp end of the field. Little is known of Hartpury this season, they didn’t attend Fours Head or BUCS Regatta and didn’t enter Championship Quad at BUCS Head, instead opting to enter Intermediate Quad. They have their top university athletes entered this weekend, with the likes of Fergus Woolnough racing who was a top GB junior last year, winning a bronze medal at the National Schools’ Regatta in the Championship Single event.
London RC
Fresh off the back of as win in the Championship Quad event on the Sunday of the Metropolitan Regatta, London will be looking to carry this momentum into Marlow this weekend as they stack up against some of the country’s best quads. London has typically been known for its club sweeping in recent years, however its past success in events in top sculling events such as the Wingfield Sculls has led to London building a strong sculling squad and it’ll be interesting to see how they get on this weekend.
Prediction
I predict that Leander will take the win in this event, followed by The Windsor Boys School and then Reading University ‘A’.
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