Henley Royal Regatta began on 1st July with a first of its own: the only known time that the Stewards have ever issued a proclamation that blazers may be removed due to the heat, before the regatta has started. It made the BBC news website, and after sweltering in the humid air for an hour or two most people gratefully dressed down.
After a very still start, the day became increasingly breezy, but mostly tail, making for quick times. (Make the most of it, the weekend looks likely to be a head-crosswind.) This gave London A in the Thames Cup club men’s eights an opportunity, which they took with a phenomenal performance. Racing against Molesey B in the prime afternoon slot at 3pm they shot off at pace and equalled first the 1994 Brown University Barrier record and then the 1993 Notts County Fawley mark.
For those worrying about facing London in later rounds, it’s worth noting that the second record they equalled was after having already taken the rate down to the low 30s, and with zero wind… Widely recognised as the big beasts of the Thames cup draw with a talent for surprising speed, this will cement their racing reputation. If they manage the stress and exhaustion of the six-day regatta properly we could be seeing a new era in LRC’s history: until the 2023 Wyfold victory the last time London had made any final was in 2006 Thames Cup, when they also won.
The first crew of the regatta to be sent home were Barbarians, an Australian club crew formed in 2018 to get former elite rowers back into the sport. The club motto is “double the effort, half the speed”, but they were prequalified into the Thames club men’s eights. With this crew having started in 2023 with the express aim of competing at this year’s regatta, it was a shame for them to be in Stewards seven minutes after the start of the event, but they gave the Salopians a run for their money with a spirited fight the whole way up the course to end only three-quarters of a length down. It certainly woke up the deckchair brigade snoozing on the Enclosures lawn.
The best race of the day was that between Tideway Scullers and Upper Thames in the Wyfold. Steering impeccably off the start, it wandered later (particularly from Upper Thames) but the two coxless fours exhausted themselves in a battle of wills which saw them never more than a quarter of a length apart. Although Scullers led only to the end of the island, they outrated Upper Thames most of the way and would have won the race on the nod at the line, were it not for the fact that Upper Thames, though veering off-line, were still moving faster and coasted over ahead by two foot, the margin confirmed by a slow-mo replay. Earlier in the day Scullers had beaten City of Cambridge in the Thames Cup with a classic row-through at the Progress boards, only for their women to lose to Tyne Amateur in the next race.
The junior men’s quads from Nereid and Hartpury put on an incredible show halfway through the afternoon. The New Jersey Nereids, fifth at the US youth nationals, were up against a similarly ambitious group from the Gloucester-based junior programme which boasts strong connections to British Rowing’s talent ID programme. Nereid led off and maintained an advantage of several feet as the two raced toe-to-toe all the way into the Enclosures. A final gear change by Hartpury surged them narrowly ahead along the Progress boards, and as they finished up by one length with the crowds roaring them on, one member of the crew caught himself a double crab just after the line. By then it didn’t matter, and the Gloucester students were through, earning the reward of racing the bye entry Windsor Boys’ B in the next round on Thursday. The Hartpury girls also had a good day, beating Headington in the Diamond Jubilee junior women’s quads.
The first “easily” verdict of the regatta came from Saugatuck in the Prince Philip junior women’s eights, whizzing away from King’s College School easily. It books them a place in the next round against Wallingford’s semi-finalists from Henley Women’s Regatta, which will test the American nationals finalists.
Those earning kudos by rowing through their rivals included the Shiplake Vikings alumnae who saw off Nottingham Rowing Club in the Wargrave: perhaps from now on they should be called the Shiplake Valkyries. Thames B played with Thames C in the Thames Cup, until they settled properly and found a rhythm which would take them through their lower crew. Tyne powered through Canadians Calgary in the Wyfolds and Marlow’s JM4x overtook Leander A in the Fawley, the first of two Pink Palace quads being ignominiously ejected on day one. That doesn’t happen very often.
Sometimes it’s enough to get through just one round. Dart Totnes were ecstatic when they beat Vesta B in the Thames Cup: although they have had fours and quads competing, this is almost certainly their first ever men’s eight. That lines them up against selected crew Tyne, who on paper might be a better match than the clubs’ history would suggest. And Canford were delighted to overtake Boulogne in the Princess Elizabeth first round: their first win at the regatta since 2012 when the junior men’s eight got to Thursday and the junior women’s quad made the final. Unfortunately they now meet Eton who disposed of Great Marlow School by a margin a sliver under ‘easily’, and in a newly-donated boat, an Empacher with duck-egg blue canvases, to break their long run of Hudsons.
A monster fight is brewing in the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Plate, where the intrusion of top-class schoolboy and junior eights from around the world has given the top British eights a mountain to climb. Lurking in the bottom half of the draw are youth national bronze medallists Marin, boasting six junior worlds medal-winners, and Australian junior champions St Ignatius’ College. The top half of the draw has several of the biggest UK names, including national schools champions Shiplake along with crews three (St Paul’s), six (Bedford) and seven (Eton), the only overseas challenger of note being Norcal who aren’t in the same league.
Hampton have the hardest job on Wednesday, having fended off a late surge from Dulwich, with the discipline to stay at 30 strokes a minute, reserving their energies for dark horses St Ignatius’, whom they will meet in round two. The big names in that half are national schools runners-up Radley, who will likely meet Marin in the quarter-finals, while St Edwards’ School are in the Hampton quarter of the draw.
The heat was so muggy that when Royal Chester were up against Northwich in the Wyfold coxless fours, neither crew had enough energy to sprint fully, Northwich hanging on by their fingernails to claim a half-length win. Both fours had difficulty steering: despite a very slight breeze there were plenty of cruisers out enjoying the sun and making the water bumpier.
The final word has to go to Mercantile’s junior women, rowing in a shell named for Ed Millar, a promising junior who collapsed and died of heart failure after an erg session in February 2025. His coach Dean Kloufetos is coaching this crew, which has in the four-seat Ed’s girlfriend Mackenzie Pugh. Alas they are up against stiff competition in the next round against the top crew from national schools, Shiplake, but the Australians put on a good show for Mackenzie and Ed, bringing his name over the line first against Wimbledon High School.
