The Metropolitan Regatta is one of the first big opportunities for crews to test out their 2km speed over the traditional six lane regatta format. For many, they will also be looking at this event as an opportunity to get noticed by the Henley Royal Regatta stewards, with the hope of getting selected straight into the main Henley draw. The Women’s Academic Eight event has 18 crews entered on both Saturday and Sunday, demonstrating the exciting development of women’s university rowing programmes across the country.
Newcastle University BC
Newcastle University has chosen to enter two eights into this category, likely crews similar to their first eight that came fifth in the Women’s Championship Eight at BUCS and their bronze medal-winning crew in the Women’s Intermediate Eight event. Newcastle has been forced to play the bridesmaid to strong crews from Durham, Edinburgh and the University of London for most of the head season, so I am sure they will be looking to seek vengeance through the regatta season.
University of Surrey BC
This crew is entered under M Egan in the Saturday draw, which would suggest it is similar to the eight that won the Beginner Women’s eight event at the BUCS Regatta. It’ll be exciting to see how a beginner crew can perform against a tougher field, potentially beating some of the intermediate eligible crews.
University of London BC
The UL boat racing in this category is their women’s first eight and will likely be similar to the crew that took home the silver medal in the Women’s Championship Eight event at the BUCS Regatta at the beginning of May. On Saturday, the boat is entered into the Women’s Championship Eight category which could suggest a slight change in personnel or just wanting to test their speed against stronger competition. Either way, this eight will be extremely fast, and they will be looking to produce a fierce performance to kick off their campaign for the Island Challenge Cup 2022.
Others
There are numerous other crews including the University of Bristol BC and University College London BC who produced strong performances in the BUCS women’s intermediate eights event, racing in some close minor finals. A notable absence is Oxford Brookes University BC, who have chosen to race in Germany while Durham University BC is racing in the championship category on both days.
Prediction
Foregoing any big shocks, I would expect the first eight from Newcastle University Boat Club to win this event on Saturday, with the University of London Boat Club winning on Sunday.
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