Henley Royal Regatta - Results & Reports 2011

HENLEY ROYAL REGATTA

29 June - 3 July 2011

Race reports by Laura Fell

Leander’s first trophy of the day came in the Prince of Wales Challenge Cup where Jack Hockley and Nick Middleton survived from the crew which won last year. With Al Sinclair and John Collins as bow pair Leander led the Tideway Scullers quad by more than a length at the Barrier and held on to that margin at Fawley, equalling the record to both markers.

As Scullers held on grimly a Leander burst at 38 saw them cross the line one length clear to set a new course record of 6.30.

John Collins, who sculled in the Reading University and Loughborough composite who lost last year’s final against Leander Club, spoke of his relief:

“I’ve worked quite a few years to get this. We had a really strong start and actually led them to the end of the island, which is something we hadn’t done in any previous races. We thought we would scull away but they kept coming back. We kept on doing push after push after push, and held them off” he said.

Next up were Leander’s Pete Reed and his Molesey partner Andy Triggs-Hodge, who were favourites to record their first-ever win in the Silver Goblets. Racing Niccolo Mornati and Lorenzo Carboncini, the Italians who placed fourth at last year’s World Championships the British pair had no trouble in easing ahead. A canvas advantage meant they were seven seconds down on their own Barrier record but the world silver medallists knew the pace as well as the opposition. As the British stroke rate went up, the power went on, and a finishing sprint saw them move past the Enclosures at 42 to win the trophy and match the record set by Redgrave and Pinsent in 1995.

The ‘Red Express’ double scull of Matt Wells and Marcus Bateman saw their final postponed for almost an hour after Bateman broke a footplate in training, claiming ‘the red mist descended’! Lining up on the start were the recently reformed Olympic champion double of David Crawshay and Scott Brennan of Australia, who beat Matt Wells and Steve Rowbotham into third place in Beijing. Out with a point to prove, the Leander men surged ahead, enjoying absolute control of the race, and crossing the line some two lengths clear of their rivals.

“It’s the first time I’ve raced them since the Olympics” said Matt Wells afterwards.

“We got out there, sat on them and controlled it, but we have to be realistic - it’s only their second race back since Beijing. They have got a lot more to come but what we wanted to do was tell them we’re ruling this event. If you want to become part of it, you have to beat us” he added.

The first Leander victory in the afternoon session came when they sought to defend their title in the Visitors’ Challenge Cup for coxless fours. Jono Clegg, Will Fletcher and Jamie Kirkwood had gone on to take the gold medal at last year’s U23 world championships in Belarus, and with John Preston replacing Dave Bell in the 2 seat the Leander/IC composite were hotly tipped to retain the trophy. Racing the heavyweight Irishmen from N.U.I. Galway and Grainne Mhaol the lightweights were more than two lengths clear at the Barrier. Not even the presence of Olympian Cormac Folan in the Irish boat could up the stakes as the GB men extended their margin and crossed the finish three lengths clear, to set themselves right on target for this year’s U23 Regatta in Amsterdam later this month.

The GB men’s four finished a disappointing fourth at last year’s world championships in New Zealand, but the reappearance of Molesey’s Tom James, an Olympic gold medallist in Beijing, has reinvigorated the crew, who tool the first World Cup gold medal of the season in Munich at the end of May. Racing the US national, competing as Chula Vista Training Centre, the Leander/Molesey composite led by half a length at the Barrier, where they equalled the record they had set two days previously. Another record followed at Fawley, where they were almost two lengths ahead, and toward the finish they looked stylish, confident and well in control, as they set another full-course record.

“Every race for us is experience - we learn a lot from our first race, our second race, stuff we do well, stuff we didn’t do well, so we’re building on our race experience each time” said bow man Matt Langridge afterwards.

Leander’s final trophy of the day came in the Queen Mother Challenge Cup for quad sculls where the GB national crew, competing as Leander/Reading University, was coached by Leander director of rowing Mark Banks. Tom Solesbury, Steve Rowbotham, Sam Townsend and Bill Lucas took on the might of the Croatian world champions in Sunday’s final. In a remarkable year the Croatians had taken the U23 gold medal in Belarus and gone on to take the senior world title in New Zealand. But the GB men refused to be cowed by the visitors’ pedigree and took control, leading by a length at the Barrier and squeezing out to a length and a half at Fawley. As the Croatians raised the rate it was to no avail as Leander/Reading University crossed the line more than a length clear to set themselves up for another thrilling encounter next weekend in Lucerne.

The final of the Grand Challenge Cup saw the GB men’s eight matched against the German world champions and this time the international pedigree ran true to form, with the Germans beating the course record set by their compatriots way back in 1989. It was a similar story in the Remenham Challenge Cup where the GB women’s eight were beaten by the US world champions in the final, and in the final of the Ladies’ Plate Leander, who had secured a historic victory in their semifinal against Harvard the previous day, went out at the hands of the German from Berlin and Rostock.

But while some might have thought conditions were not as fast, with the tailwind slightly less gusty, the ‘Red Express’ Leander double of Marcus Bateman and Matthew Wells were the first crew to prove this wrong. Fresh from breaking the 29 year old record to the Barrier yesterday in a time of 1.56, the men returned today to face the United States of America, racing as Chula Vista Training Centre.

After recording a slightly slower time of 1.57 to the Barrier today, the Leander double, rating a cool and comfortable looking 35, inched ahead of the Americans, breaking the record at Fawley by three seconds, in a time of 3.17. The overall course record was in danger – as Wells and Bateman crossed the finish line, ¾ length up on their opponents, they smashed the course record by five seconds, in a time of 6.50.

“We wanted to make sure we got control of the race quite quickly and then we were looking to get in to our rhythm” admitted Marcus Bateman.

“We weren’t really looking to break records, For tomorrow, we will just focus on our boat speed. If records happen, they happen” he added.

The double now face the Australian Olympic champions David Crawshay and Scott Brennan in tomorrow’s final.

The long-awaited Grand Challenge Cup debuted at the Royal Regatta today and the Great British men’s eight, rowing as Molesey Boat Club and Leander Club, raced the Australian men’s eight, rowing as Australian Institute of Sport. A tight race ensued, Molesey Club and Leander Club squeezing three quarters of a length out of their opponents, until on hearing the cheers as they stormed through the enclosures, the eight increased their stroke rate to 38, and their lead to a length. The Australian eight responded, pushing on at 40 strokes a minute but could not stay in contention.

Phelan Hill believes “From start to finish, it was a really well-executed race. I think we put right a number of things we’ve been previously getting wrong and we wanted to improve on. We lead out the blocks which is a great feeling, rather than always having to chase people down.”

Leander and Molesey now face the World Champions from Germany in the final tomorrow.

Leander and Reading University, the GB quad, raced Chula Vista Training Centre, the American national boat in the Queen Mother Challenge Cup. Sculling at 36, the GB men led Chula Vista by half a length at the barrier, extending this lead to a length and a half at the mile. Despite a late surge from Chula Vista, rating 39, to take back half a length, Leander and Reading held them off to take victory by three quarters of a length in 6.17 and will race World Champions Croatia tomorrow.

Tom Solesbury said of the race: “It was good. We had a really good warm up, we knew the United States were going to be tough opposition. We got off the start really well and we’ve been working hard on keeping our length and we started moving up on them really early. It’s going to be tough tomorrow against Croatia.”

The semi-final of the Ladies Plate more than matched the hype surrounding the introduction of the Grand and Queen Mother. Leander A, who yesterday quashed Leander B to advance, were up against Harvard and enjoyed a stunning victory in a very close race. Though Leander A led the race from the start, the lead was marginal, as Harvard surged between a quarter of a length and a third of a length down. Leander Club A, rating 38 as they came over the line, held off a 40 strokes a minute attack in the final 100m to secure victory and advance to the final tomorrow, where they will face Germany’s European eight, rowing as Berlin and Rostock.

Cheers from the enclosures as the crews raced down were more than matched by the roars from the Leander Club A boat as they crossed the line a third of a length up, none louder than Ben Duggan at seven. A former Brown student, the rivalry between him and Harvard was obvious: “We had a feeling Harvard were potentially underestimating us. We knew if we got them off the start we could really rattle them. I raced Harvard a lot and there’s a very intense rivalry that I’ve experienced for four years. I think it just boiled over at the end of the race.”

High calibre Leander crews again faced each other in the Prince of Wales Challenge Cup. Leander B, a lightweight crew, were slightly ahead at the barrier equalling the record of 1.53 set yesterday by Tideway Scullers’ School A. However, the heavyweight crew, sculling at 35, took control of the race at Fawley, equalling their record set yesterday of 3.10 and stretched the lead to a length. Despite a high rating burst in the last hundred metres from Leander B, Leander A maintained their lead of length, crossing the line in 6.33 to advance to the final tomorrow where they will face The Tideway Scullers’ School A.

The Great British women’s eight, racing as Leander Club and Gloucester Rowing Club, today raced Oxford Brookes University and Molesey Boat Club – the current Great British Under 23 women’s eight. Rating a lively 36 to the barrier, Leander Club and Gloucester Rowing Club took a length and half lead out over their younger opponents, extending this lead as the race went on to three and a half lengths. The eight crossed the line looking comfortable, three lengths up, in 7.00 and will race World Champions Princeton Training Centre A for the first time this international season in the final of the Remenham Challenge Cup tomorrow.

Fresh from their record race yesterday, Leander Club and Molesey Club, racing in the Steward’s Challenge Cup today faced the national four from Belarus, Dinamo Brest. Despite equalling the record they set themselves yesterday to Fawley, recording a time of 3.05, the Great British men’s four relaxed in the second half of the race, as they eased ahead to a three length lead. Finishing in a time of 6.25, rating a cool 32, the crew was all smiles as they crossed the line.

Gold and bronze medallists in the men’s pair at the first Samsung World Rowing Cup in Munich faced each other today. Rowing as Leander Club and Molesey Boat Club, Pete Reed and Andy Triggs-Hodge raced Apostolos and Nikolaos Gkountoulas of the Nautical Club of Thessaloniki, Greece. By Fawley, the Great British pair had a three length lead over Greece, rating 34. They extended this lead at the mile and the eighth to five lengths, taking a very comfortable victory with a verdict of easily. The pair will face silver medallists in Munich, Carboncini and Mornati of Italy in tomorrow’s final.

In the Visitor’s Challenge Cup, the final race of the day for the club, Leander and Imperial College raced Oxford Brookes University and Molesey Boat Club. Racing hard to the barrier, rating 39, the lightweight four had a three quarter of a length lead and had equalled the record set in 1998 by Isis Boat Club. At Fawley, the four set a new course record of 3.12 and had increased their lead to a length. Oxford Brookes University and Molesey Boat Club, rating 40 came back at the Leander crew to reduce the lead to half a length, but it was a case of too little, too late. Leander Club and Imperial College, winning by two thirds of a length in 6.38 will race National University of Ireland, Galway and Gráinne Mhaol Boat Club, Ireland tomorrow.

The junior Leander Club quadruple sculls, racing in the Fawley Challenge Cup, faced an incredibly close challenge this morning. The juniors were racing Banks Rowing Club, of Australia, and yesterday, the two crews recorded exactly the same time at each marker. That the winning verdict today was only one foot is therefore of no surprise. Devastatingly for Leander, this verdict did not go their way, despite a huge push to get back in to touch after being a length down. Banks Rowing Club recorded a time of 6.53 and will race Sydney Rowing Club this evening for a chance to advance to the final tomorrow.

The Leander and Reading University women’s eight, racing in the Remenham Cup also had a very tough ask this morning, as they drew the World and Olympic Champions United States of America, racing as Princeton Training Centre. Despite a valiant effort, the girls lost to the champion crew by four and a half lengths.

With the Aussies hot on their heels the GB men beat the record to the Barrier, equalled the record to Fawley and beat the overall course record previously held by Cambridge University and Croatia, by two seconds to storm home in 6.20, 3/4 up on Australia.

“We got ahead quite early on, but they kept on at us. We weren’t quite flat out, we were in control from the start of the race. When you finish a race like that and find out you got the record, you’re almost disappointed you didn’t really push it” said Matt Langridge.

In the Double Sculls Matt Wells and Marcus Bateman raced hard to the Barrier, knowing that conditions were favourable for a record breaking row, and got there in 1.56, knocking two seconds off the record previously set by Steve Redgrave and Adam Clift as long ago as 1982. Racing the lightweight Chinese double the world silver medallists went on to win by 2 1/4 lengths in 7.11 and haven't ruled another possible record when they race the Australian Olympic champions David Crawshay and Scott Brennan in the next round.

“We’re really looking forward to facing the Australians. We’ll use every opportunity to learn about them, learn about their race tactics, and it’s great that they have come over” said Bateman.

Next up were Leander’s Pete Reed and Molesey’s Andy Triggs-Hodge, who broke another Redgrave record while racing father and son duo Neil and Stuart West of Walton Rowing Club.

Redgrave's record of 1.58 to the Barrier, set with Matt Pinsent in 1993, fell victim to the GB pair who knocked two seconds off the legends' time on their way to a 1 1/4 length win ahead of the Walton pair. Reed and Triggs-Hodge and Reed now face the Gkountoulas brothers, bronze medallists at this year's Samsung World Cup regatta in Munich, in tomorrow's semifinal.

Earlier in the day the defending champions, Leander A, took to the water in the Prince of Wales event for club quads. Alan Sinclair, John Collins, Nick Middleton and Jack Hockley took a commanding lead from the start over a Bexhill and Eastbourne crew which included Joe Guppy and Ben Board – two members of the Leander junior development programme. In doing so the Leander men equalled the record to the Barrier in 1.54 and beat their own record to Fawley set just the previous day.

In the same event Leander lightweights Ross Hunter, David Jones, Nick Fearnhead, and Oliver Mahoney enjoyed another very close race against a Tideway Scullers’ and Stowe composite, crossing the line ¾ length clear to earn themselves a place racing Leander A in tomorrow’s semi!

But it won’t be the first time Leander crews have faced each other at this year’s Regatta. Earlier today Leander A and B battled it out down the course in the Ladies Challenge Plate, much to the delight of pink aficionados lining the banks. Friendly rivalry exists between these two crews, who have raced against each other for much of this season, with the A crew triumphing over Leander B by just a second at Metropolitan Regatta in early June. Today’s lead for the A crew was slightly more, as they edged further away at each signal, eventually crossing the line 1 ¼ lengths over their Leander teammates.

Several Leander athletes also made their debut today, including the two GB women’s composites in the Remenham Challenge Cup. The national eight, racing as Leander and Gloucester won easily over Thames in a time of 7.08, and then followed the GB European eight, racing as Leander and Reading University, who had a slightly tighter race against Vesta Rowing Club, whom they beat by 1 ¼ lengths.

Despite an early lead to the Barrier by University of Queensland, Leander’s junior quad in the Fawley squeezed past their opposition, rating a solid 35, to win the race by a 1 ¼ lengths in a time of 6.53.

The Leander/IC composite in the Visitor’s, the GB U23 gold medallists from 2010, beat London and Thames easily in a time of 7.15 to advance to a meeting tomorrow with the Irishmen from NUIG and Gráinne Mhaol. But there was disappointment for Leander B in the same event who lost easily to Newcastle University and Marino Billi, Italy.

As records fall and Leander crews come head-to-head, Henley Royal Regatta just gets better and better!

30 June: Leander made its debut on the second day of racing at this year’s Henley Royal Regatta, where a light cross tailwind and clear skies greeted the early crowds.

There were cheers a-plenty on the banks for Dave Read as he faced the American Thomas Graves in his opening heat of the Diamonds and in a tight battle the home support for Read was evident from the towpath. With both
rating 35 for the majority of the race, the two scullers were level at Rememham, but chants from the bank were not enough to prevent Graves edging ahead, eventually taking a 1 1/2 length victory in 7.58.

The second Leander boat of the day was the crew based on last year's gold medal U23 lightweight four contending the Visitor’s. Jono Clegg, John Preston, Will Fletcher and Jamie Kirkwood had a commanding lead from the start of their event over the opposition from The English Rowing Club of Russia. Approaching the Enclosures the lightweights looked relaxed and confident and took a 4 1/4 length victory despite giving away four stone a man.

Next up was the GB men’s pair of Pete Reed and Andy Triggs-Hodge racing Worcester in their opening heat of the Silver Goblets. In predictable fashion the world silver medallists dominated the race, adn were just three seconds outside the record to the Barrier, where they relaxed and cruised home to a comfortable win.

“It was a good start" said Reed afterwards. "We had to stay very professional and Jurgen said when we boated to respect the opposition whoever they are. It was a very fast time to the barrier, and there’s still more speed to come.”

Looking to repeat their victory of last year in the Prince of Wales, Leander have boated two strong crews. Nick Middleton and Jack Hockley return from last year's winning crew, competing with John Collins and Alan Sinclair as Leander A. Collins, who joined the club in September, rowed in the Reading/Loughborough students composite which lost to Leander in last year's final! In their opening heat Leander A beat their rivals Reading University by 2 1/4 lengths in the fastest time of the day, having equalled the record to the Barrier, and beaten the record to Fawley in the process.

Leander B included lightweights Ross Hunter, Dave Jones, Nick Fearnhead and Oli Mahoney, who raced a closely fought battle against an Exeter/Plymouth composite which included Leander junior hopeful Luke Moon. Rating 36 for the mority of the course Leander clinched victory by 3 1/4 lengths to earn a second round battle against Tideway Scullers and Stowe School tomorrow.