GB Final Trials
The Redgrave and Pinsent Rowing Lake in Caversham was the venue on Easter weekend for the GB Final Trials Regatta 2019. This is a big weekend for Leander Club in the regatta calendar as developing talented rowers and helping them gain selection to row for GB is our absolute priority. The weather for the weekend was fantastic with not a cloud in the sky, leaving athletes searching for sun cream and shade rather than the usual shelter from wind and rain.
Leander Club had an incredible 57 athletes invited to the trial out of the 145 total. Thirty-three of the Leander athletes are GB squad members already who are based out of Caversham, but impressively 24 of our rowers are based at Leander Club in our development group.
The two-day trial consisted of a 1900-meter time trial, followed by multi-lane semi-finals on the Saturday and all the finals on the Sunday.
First up was the men’s pairs time trial where Leander Club successfully qualified 16 athletes into the A/B semi-finals. Making the top 12 is very tough considering the very high standard, so we were delighted that three Leander development pairs made the cut to race later in the afternoon in the A/B semi-finals.
In the women’s pairs 13 Leander athletes qualified into the A/B semi finals and again two Leander development pairs made the top 12, booking their spots in the semi finals.
In the men’s single sculls seven Leander scullers qualified to A/B including 18-year-old James Cartwright and Victor Kleshnev from our development squad.
In the women’s single, four Leander scullers made the A/B semi final including three Leander development scullers.
In the men’s lightweight sculls Will Fletcher qualified in 2nd place.
Semi finals
After the disappointment of just missing out of the top 12 in the time trial Cameron Buchan and James Robson won their C/D semi-final in style putting them in Sunday’s C final.
Olivia Caesar and Juliet Perry had a great race to win their C/D semi final by 1 foot in a very tight field qualifying them for Sunday’s C final.
Olly Stephens and Olly Dix were both disappointed to miss out on the top 12 in the morning’s men’s single time trial. But they both managed to win their C/D semi finals comfortably, which earned their place their place in Sunday’s C final.
In the men’s pairs A/B semi-final Tom Ford and Jacob Dawson won with Sholto Carnegie and Tom Jeffery in 3rd.
In the second semi-final Harry Glenister and George Rossiter from the Leander development squad won their semi-final in style with Olly Wynn -Griffith qualifying in 3rd.
In the women’s pairs Bennett and Norton won their semi final ahead of Leander’s development squad pair Annie Withers and Sam Courty, followed by Fiona Gammond in 3rd.
In the second semi-final Rowan McKellar and Hattie Taylor won and Anastasia Posner qualified for Sunday’s A final.
In the men’s lightweight semi Will Fletcher won convincingly and secured his place in the A final on Sunday.
In the men’s single sculls semi-final John Collins won in a great race with Tom Barras and Angus Groom who both qualified for the A final. Young James Cartwright came home in 5th setting him up for the B final.
In the second semi-final of the men’s singles Jack Beaumont and Pete Lambert qualified with Victor Kleshnev coming 5th and sending him to the B final.
In the women’s single semi-finals Vicky Thornley won with Georgy Brayshaw and Ruth Siddorn fighting out for the 3rd spot to make the A final. In the end both missed out and had to go to B final with Emily Carmichael.
Finals day
Cam Buchan and James Robson won a very close C final of the men’s pairs against boat race winners from Cambridge University.
Rachel Heap and Charlotte Fennell came 3rd in the Women’s pairs D final.
Olivia Cesar and Juliet Perry came 3rd in the women’s pair C final.
Olly Stephens won the C final in a great tussle with team-mate from the Leander development squad Olly Dix by half a length.
In the men’s B final of the pairs Matt Rossiter and Moe Sbihi came 1st ahead of Mat Tarrent and Tom George. Adam Neil and James Johnston came in 3rd with our development squad pairs Barny Stentiford and Callum McBrierty, Ryan Todhunter and Charles Wait-Roberts in 4th and 6th, respectively.
In the men’s A final of pairs Dawson and Ford came 2nd, and Harry Glenister and George Rossiter from our development program came an incredible 3rd. in 5th was Sholto Carnegie and Tom Jeffery with Olly Wynn-Griffith and Tom Ransley in 6th place, having capsized in the last 100 meters.
Katherin Maitland was 3rd in the C final of women’s singles
In the women’s B final of pairs Emily Ford rowing with Sara Parfett took the win with Jo Wratton and Katherine Douglass in 4th with our Leander development pair Susie Dear and Natasha Harris White coming home in 5th place.
In the women’s pair A final Holly Norton and Karen Bennett were pushed hard by Rowan McKellar and Hattie Taylor but Anastasia Posner pushed hard to the line to take 2nd place. Leander Club’s development crew’s Annie Withers and Sam Courty came a fantastic 5th.
In the men’s lightweight single scull Will Fletcher showed his class to secure the win by some margin over a strong field.
In the men’s B final Victor Kleshnev came 4th and James Cartwright came 6th
A great race in the men’s A final saw John Collins coming 2nd ahead of Tom Barras and Jack Beaumont in 4th place.
In the women’s B final of the single scull Leander development sculler Georgy Brayshaw had a fantastic race to come 2nd over team mate Ruth Siddorn by less than a second who came 3rd.
In the women’s A final Vicky Thornley demonstrated her dominance in the single to take the win in style ahead of Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne of Reading RC.
All in all, a very successful GB trial for Leander Club.
