This weekend on Dorney Lake, men’s crews from across the world will converge in the last major multi-lane regatta of the season. In the coxed fours, there are 48 crews on the start list, 15 of whom have been placed into the championship event. For many of these crews, this will provide the last line on their racing resume as they jostle for pre-qualification to the Stewards’, Visitors’, and Wyfold Challenge Cups at Henley Royal Regatta in just over a week’s time.
Thames Rowing Club
The largest entry in this event, Thames Rowing Club have four coxless fours entered this weekend, three of whom have been granted Championship status. The highest seeded is nominally the ‘C’ crew and contains three members of their victorious Thames Challenge Cup winning crew from last year, alongside Tom Walton, one of their Britannia Challenge Cup winners. With such depth of experience, this crew is destined for at least the Visitors Challenge Cup and will be expecting a strong result this weekend to show they are on the right track. The ‘lower’ Thames crews still contain great levels of rowing experience but lack the red boxes that would exclude them from the Wyfold Challenge Cup. Don’t be surprised to see a few crews from the Putney powerhouse lining up in the A-Final.
Oxford Brookes University Boat Club
The top-ranked crew in this event is made up of some of the top athletes who train out of the Oxford Brookes University Boat Club in Wallingford. Their crew contains star names of the sport including the transatlantic talent Jamie Copus, with all members of this crew having won at least one event at Henley Royal Regatta in the last two years. The burgundy giants will be tough to beat and this crew is one that could likely hold their own on any stage in the sport and will settle for nothing but victory this weekend.
Leander Club
The third of in a trio of dominant British clubs, Leander’s entry in this event is rather accomplished. Two members of their fifth-placed ‘B’ eight from the Head of the River are joined by a couple of former U23 world champions. This crew, while lower on PRI points than some of the other entries in this event, will have no such lack of speed as they aim to mix things up with the other top-tier crews in this event.
Mercantile Rowing Club, Australia
The first of this event’s international crews is the Wyfold Challenge Cup crew from Mercantile Rowing Club in Melbourne, Australia. This crew, possibly the lesser of the two crews making the trip around the world, is made up of many members of the club rowing squad, who placed third in the club eight at the Australian national championships, and athletes who finished in both fourth and fifth place in the equivalent coxless four event. Their first race since arriving in the UK, they will be racing here mostly to shake off the cobwebs before the focus of their trip takes place at Henley Royal Regatta.
Tel Aviv Rowing Club, Israel
The other international entry in the draw is from Tel Aviv Rowing Club, the first Israeli crew to make the trip to the UK in recent memory. With a language barrier and fallings-out between the member clubs and the national federation, there is little information available on the form of this crew. However, inspection of the crew list suggests that this crew has little to do with Tel Aviv. The crew is bookended by Sean and Cal Gorvy; the former is a Goldie athlete from the eighties while the latter is his son, a Princeton lightweight. The two are joined by top-class athletes, last seen at Eton College and the University of Pennsylvania. This crew is something of a wildcard but if they can live up to their sterling resumes, this crew could be one to watch.
Marlow Rowing Club
The crew from Marlow Rowing Club is one to be reckoned with. Winners on Sunday at the Metropolitan Regatta, this crew has made just one change, bringing in the famous name of Matt Brigham. Known for his famous win over Mahé Drysdale, he joins a crew brimming with athletes previously affiliated to Leander and Oxford Brookes. Together, they may be able to challenge the status quo and demonstrate the talents in British Club rowing, away from the Putney embankment. Likely eyeing a run in the Wyfold Challenge Cup, this crew has what it takes to mix with the very best the domestic scene has to offer.
Upper Thames Rowing Club
Another crew that has been tearing up the club scene so far this season is the offering from Upper Thames Rowing Club. Winners of the club event on the Saturday of the Metropolitan Regatta and finishing second in the same event on Sunday, they will be wanting to get their revenge on the Marlow crew that stopped them from doing the double. The top offering from the Henley-based club, they will also be expecting a deep run in the Wyfold Challenge Cup. In a fuller field this weekend, they will be able to properly measure their speed against more of the country, sorted into this top event.
Prediction
It is becoming cliché at this point, but my guess would be that the medals will be contested between Oxford Brookes, Leander and Thames. For gold, the power, skill and experience in the Oxford Brookes boat make them my pick, followed by Thames and Leander in second and third respectively.
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