First raced in 1947, National Schools’ Regatta is today one of the leading junior regattas in the country. Aside from the cancellation of Saturday and Sunday racing in 2008 due to unsafe weather conditions, the regatta has been a lynchpin of the junior regatta circuit for as long as most of us can remember, and the cancellation of the 2020 event is the first time in recent history that it has been called off altogether.
On 29th March, the NSR Committee met to discuss plans to postpone this year’s regatta to the 25th-27th June, rather than going ahead as usual on the last weekend of May; however, it was finally decided that the event would occur, according to tradition, on the 29th and 30th of May. Despite the ongoing uncertainty which the pandemic is still bringing to our lives and the rowing calendar, plans have been made for the regatta to go ahead – if not quite as normal – then as close to it as possible. In an attempt to deliver a regatta which remains loyal to founder Desmond Hill’s desire ‘to provide wider experience and competition for juniors in school’, the committee have proposed that two regattas are held this year.
The first regatta in May, billed as a ‘Behind Closed Doors’ event, will only be open to competitors for J16-18 events, and it is expected that only Championship events will go ahead, with no doubling up allowed. Unfortunately, no spectating – arguably the best part of regatta season – will be permitted at the venue to keep numbers to a minimum. There will, however, be a livestream so that friends and family can support from afar.
The second event, the NSR Youth Festival, is scheduled for September, and will be a one-day event for J14-16 rowers. Though details are yet to be released about the events which will be on offer, it is expected to be ‘a fun, multi-distance event with a difference’ to keep younger rowers engaged in the sport, and the committee hopes to return to the event’s usual format in 2022.
With all this in mind, it seems like a good time to reflect on NSR over the years – the good times, the bad times, the records, and the ridiculous. Below are just a few examples of readers’ favourite memories from over the years.
For Benjy Tremelling, a standout memory is from 2017, when Norwich School Boat Club won the J15 Championship VIII. This was the first time that NSBC ever won a race in the eight at NSR – certainly an achievement to be proud of!
Archie Duckworth recalls winning the time trial of his event after coming off the water and being certain that he and his crew had no chance of making it out of the first round of heats.
Then there are those classic tales of capsizing in the warm-up lane and crashing off the start in the final, whilst Josh Jenkins’ memory is certainly more sobering – having to deal with the disappointment of having last year’s regatta cancelled in his final year as a junior rower.
With lockdown continuing to gradually lift and events beginning to open up, it seems that there will be plenty of opportunities to make new memories from this year’s regatta season, as well as those in the coming years.
That’s all for now. If you’re hungry for more, check out any of our other pieces from The Catch, listen to the latest podcast episode, or flick through our race previews.
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