With the summer evenings drawing in and the end of the head season on the horizon, it’s time to set our sights on the biggest women’s rowing event of the season so far: WeHORR. Rowers up and down the UK (and even further afield) will take on a course steeped in history, all vying for an opportunity to write their own chapter. This year the event brings 326 beginner to elite crews to take their turn down the 6.8km championship course. Sitting between beginner and senior, and accounting for an eye-watering 120 crews, is the challenge category. But with over a third of the entries, which crews are the ones to watch?
London Rowing Club
“Success attracts success” holds true for London Rowing Club. Building on their second-year WeHORR pennant victory, a robust summer season, and the men’s triumphant Wyfold performance, the women’s side seems to have reaped the rewards of a healthy recruitment campaign. This year, they have doubled their WeHorr entries to include four boats in total. The spotlight in the challenge category will be on 128 London Rowing Club C as they aim to assert their dominance on their home water in the challenge category and stay hot on the heels of their crew mates in the senior and champ categories respectfully.
Vesta Rowing Club
Vesta Rowing Club is set to launch not one, not two, but three challenge crews, consisting of two from their Senior squad and one from their Intermediate Squad. Fresh from securing an Intermediate 2 pennant at Quintin, the second crew proudly showcases ‘home-grown talent,’ with several members having progressed through the learn-to-row and development programs, including cox Annabel Cave. Despite the club’s local roots, the crews boast international representation, featuring athletes from Australia, America, Canada, Wales, Scotland, Germany, and South Africa.
Cantabrigian Rowing Club
“Cantabs,” a club renowned for consistently producing successful pennant-winning WEHORR crews, has added another feather to its cap with a recent triumph at Hammersmith Head. Their A crew clinched victory in the Intermediate 8+ category and impressively secured the fifth-fastest time among all Women’s Eights on the day. Following closely, the B crew finished just four places behind. Hailing from Cambridge, this club has built a strong reputation for its ability to nurture and develop sweep rowing talent and will no doubt be looking to add to its Tideway accolades this year.
City of Bristol
Recently returning from training camp, the performance squad at the City of Bristol will be poised and ready to race come the ninth of March. CoB boasted an impressive 22/23 season where they secured a fifth-place finish in the time trial of the Copas Cup at Henley Women’s last year and went on to secure one of the coveted pre-qualification slots for the Wargrave at Henley Royal Regatta. From afar, it appears the momentum of the City of Bristol women’s squad has been steadily growing, consistently turning up and shutting down rivals on the national stage. Although their A crew may contend in the senior category, I’ve a hunch that this 140 City of Bristol B crew will emerge as a noteworthy contender in the challenge category.
Oxford University Rowing Club
Historically speaking, it’s very rare we see an entry into WeHORR from both Cambridge and Oxford University. With just a few weeks to go until the annual blue-on-blue tideway-based derby, might we be about to witness a sneaky peek of what’s to come? The answer is: unlikely. Whilst Cambridge will be fielding a crew into the senior category, this year, 177 Oxford University Boat Club’s entry’s falling into the challenge category, suggest these athletes are a little greener to the race circuit and are likely a part of OU’s development program. Guess we’ll all just have to wait till the 30th March for that fixture!
It has be said, that the above crews mentioned here represent just a handful of the 1170 athletes comprising the challenge category. Athletes and coaches alike have told me that unpredictable weather in recent weeks has meant that selection and fine-tuning has gone right to the wire. This year more than ever, it will be exciting to see who the movers and shakers are in the heart of UK women’s rowing.
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