Sports Report - NSR 2023 Special | News

30 May 2023

Friday 26 May saw the return of the National Schools’ Regatta, in which the College entered 13 boats, consisting of 94 pupils, across the J14, J15, J16, and senior categories. For many, it was their first time competing at NSR while for some, it would be their final time taking part in this prestigious competition in Shiplake colours.

Day 1 saw the J14 and J15 crews take to the water. While the weather was beautiful with its sunshine, the strong wind added an extra challenge with crews struggling to align themselves for races. In their time trials, the J14 3rd 8x+ finished 24th, while the 2nd 8x+ finished 13th, qualifying for the C Final. Meanwhile, the J14 1st 8x+ finished 12th, qualifying for the B Final. In their B Final, the 1st 8x+ raced well to finish 5th. However, the pick of the bunch that day was the 2nd 8x+ consisting of Max Shevlane, Harry Tilney, Henry Howe-Davies, Matthew Ball, Alexander Invest, Sam Baker, Axel Crane, Josh Zacharias and Michael Joiner (cox) who, in their final, overcame a disastrous start to take the win! Both the J15 1st and 2nd 8+ did time trials and both qualified for their respective B and C finals. The 2nd 8+ raced well and finished 5th in their final and, despite having to wait well over an hour on the water for their race to commence, the 1st 8+ put this aside to come home 6th.

On Day 2, it was the turn of the J16 and senior crews to row. In their time trial, the J16 4+ finished 24th, while the J16 1st 8+ finished 11th to qualify for the B final. In their final, the crew put together a strong race to finish 6th.

On the senior side, the boys’ Ch 8+ and girls’ Ch 4x raced in their respective heats. Both crews put in strong performances, finishing in the top 2, to return the following day on Sunday for their semi-finals. The girls’ Ch 4+ finished 8th in their time trial, qualifying for the semi-finals. In that race, the crew just missed out on qualifying for the A Final, finishing 5th to go through to the B Final. In what would be the final Shiplake race of the day, the crew put together a strong race to finish 2nd.

However, there were still medals to be won on that day for the Shiplake boats. First to win a medal was the boys’ 2nd 8+ consisting of Leo Creighton, Tom Madden, Oliver Smee, Matthew Provoost, Johannes Meiswinkel, Nick Summerfield, Jack Duggan, Ben Brooks and Ollie Joiner (cox) who, after qualifying for their A Final, raced hard to the line to finish 3rd and take the bronze medal. The 0.6s gap to 4th place showed just how close it was! Not wanting to be outdone by the boys, the girls’ 2nd 4x consisting of Lara Vahlé, Georgia Catlin, Emily Over and Sophia Foreman took home the silver medal in their A Final cueing jubilant scenes on and off the water.

The final day of NSR saw the boys’ Ch 8+ and girls’ Ch 4x return for their semi-finals and finals. In their semi, the 8+ consisting of Fin Worthington, Freddie Middleton, Harrison Harper, Callan Wallis, Ned Floyd, Seric Critchley, Fred Fox, Luke Byca, and Charlie Keena (cox) finished 3rd to qualify for the A Final. However, the 0.26s gap to 1st place and eventual winners St Edward’s School would prove to be costly with lane position and wind becoming factors in the final. The boys would eventually finish 6th and were left to rue what could’ve been. In their semi, the Ch 4x consisting of Anna Merritt, Maya Jackson, Emily Downing, and Jess Weir also finished 3rd to qualify for the A Final. The crew gave it their all but eventually finished 5th. It was perhaps not the results that both pupils would’ve liked, but it does serve as extra motivation going into the final major event of the year – Henley Royal Regatta, which takes place later in June.

Speaking after the event, Director of Rowing Mr Dave Currie said: 'National Schools' Regatta is a real pinnacle of our regatta season; it's a great event with some fantastic racing. All of our students did a great job and have made the school very proud!'

Well done to the following pupils who competed at NSR 2023: