St Paul’s School Boat Club edged out St Edward’s School Boat Club in a tightly contested Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup final on Sunday at the 2026 Henley Royal Regatta.
The result surprised many observers who expected St Paul’s, a perennial force in schoolboy rowing, to control the race, but St Edward’s delivered a tenacious performance, pushing the London-based boys to within a length. The final verdict? Two-thirds of a length to St Paul’s.
Teddies’ final-day performance capped a week-long run through the draw. In Friday’s quarter-final, the 2023 winners met defending champions Shiplake College, stayed level through the Barrier before taking charge by Fawley and winning by a canvas. On Saturday, they were up by a canvas at the end of the island against King’s College School, stretched that to three-quarters of a length at the Barrier, and won by just over two lengths to book their place in the final.
St Paul’s had earned their favourites’ tag by knocking out Radley College in the other semi-final. Radley had dominated the schoolboy season and had set the National Schools’ Regatta course record (5:43), making their defeat by one length a significant result in its own right. St Paul’s were level with Radley to the Barrier, edged a canvas ahead by Fawley, then pulled clear to win.
That form line made St Paul’s the crew to beat on Sunday, but the pattern from Teddies’ earlier rounds held: they stayed close early, found speed through the middle of the course, and refused to let their opponents settle. Grit write large from Teddies rowers. Still, St Paul’s held strong to return to their winning way: a reversal of the 2023 final.
