Swift exit for Olympians after their triumph at Royal Regatta
Hcrews given medals early to join Team GB’S celebrations hireland pair add lightweight doubles to their Tokyo gold
Three crews had to be presented with their trophies early on the final day of the Henley Royal Regatta, because they included Olympians booked to rush off to the Team GB homecoming concert at Wembley in the afternoon.
Tokyo silver medallists Harry
Leask, Tom Barras and Jack Beaumont sculled to victory over University of Cork and Skibbereen with Rory Harris substituting for Angus Groom, before racing off to their PR duties in London.
Three other GB Olympians joined them, Agecroft’s Graeme Thomas having to fight to the line to conquer Leander oarsman Seb Devereux in the singles, becoming the first British winner of the Diamonds since 2008. Emily Craig and Imogen Grant, the British rowers closest to a gold medal on time in Tokyo, became the first lightweights to capture the Stonor women’s doubles title. Chased all the way up the course by Leander openweights Jess Leyden and Georgie Bradshaw, Craig and Grant coolly repulsed all attacks, keeping their Unionflagged shell in front for a narrow win before Grant returns to her medical studies in Cambridge.
The British Olympic spare pair, Morgan Bolding and Mat Tarrant, ended their season with a win in the Silver Goblets pairs.
Oxford Brookes University shrugged off the false starts given to their entire club on Saturday to claim six Henley trophies, their best result. This included victory in the Grand Challenge Cup over their own alumni, after which the eight split into two fours to win the Stewards’ and Visitors’ Challenge Cups. However Leander could boast the most wins, capturing eight trophies including the women’s top eights, fours, pairs, singles and quads.
The current dominance of these two clubs in UK rowing was exposed by the absence of the overseas clubs who usually balk them in several finals. No other club could come
close, although Thames won the club eights and coxless fours.
Eton College claimed their 15th Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup, moving into a steady lead over St Paul’s early on, after their cox had been worried about their rudder before the race. The gold and bronze medallists from the National Schools Regatta in May came out with virtually the same margin, Eton breaking contact with St Paul’s in mid-race, but unable to row clean away and held to a margin under two lengths.
Shiplake College celebrated their first Henley win as a single club, their junior women’s quad winning the Diamond Jubilee trophy from Marlow, while Headington School were the first to put their names on the new Junior Women’s Eights trophy.
Three titles still went overseas, the closest margin and most impressive racing coming from Fintan Mccarthy and Paul O’donovan, Ireland’s lightweight doubles Olympic champions.