SE CHRONICLE 684

51 ST EDWARD’S CHRONICLE

Rowing By Adam Moffatt, Head of Rowing The Summer Term proved to be another successful one for the Boat Club with outstanding performances coming from all age groups. The Shell girls set about developing race experience at Thames Ditton and Worcester Regatta which gave them enough belief that a trip to the National Schools’ Regatta (NSR) was possible. They raced in the coxed 4X and although they didn’t make it out of the time trial, the opportunity to compete at a national level and on the Olympic course was one they will remember and there is plenty more to come from these girls. The Shell boys competed at the same events as the girls, along with some private fixtures with Shiplake and Radley College, which proved beneficial for all. At NSR they raced in an A and B Octo with the B boat missing out on the Final by less than a second and the A boat qualifying directly to the B Final, finishing 6th. It was very pleasing to see the progress of the Shells and in particular their small boat skills, with a few of them regularly

plenty to be excited about as they move onto J16 and senior rowing. In order to facilitate pupils who were keen to train more and race at a high level, the J16s and senior groups were mixed together at the start of the Spring Term and produced what is arguably the strongest boys’ and girls’ squads to have boated from SESBC. The boys’ 2nd VIII were a highlight and took the summer season by storm, with wins at Thames Ditton Regatta (winning J18 Eights by a couple of feet over Hampton’s 1st VIII) and J18 2nd VIIIs at Marlow Regatta. They placed 4th in 2nd VIIIs at NSR, narrowly missing a medal which had seemed a long way off back in March. Their positive attitude and eagerness to develop was fantastic to see and they have set the bar high for future 2nd VIII boats. The boys’ 1st VIII raced superbly all summer with wins at Wallingford Regatta, Nottingham City and a well-raced silver medal at NSR. This was the closest finish and highest level of schoolboy 1st VIIIs

looking to get in extra sessions; their enthusiasm for the sport is very exciting indeed! The J15s raced at multiple events throughout the year including Marlow Town, Wallingford, Worcester, Thames Ditton and NSR. There were some excellent performances from the boys’ A VIII early in the term which caused plenty of optimism leading into NSR. A few technical glitches in the semi-final, however, put them into the B Final where they finished 3rd. They were able to finish on a good note in their final race at Reading Regatta with a semi-final win over Eton who placed 4th at NSR and then a one-length loss to Radley who were national silver medallists. One of the highlights from the J15 girls’ squad was the bronze medal at NSR, with the girls showing great determination in testing conditions to come away with a medal. For most of the year group, this was their first experience of completing a summer term of rowing and, as with the Shells, there is

The girls’ 1st VIII: Adelaide Del Mar, Meara James, Isabella Makepeace, Roxy Welford, Isabel Llabres Diaz, Hermione Brewster, Evie Gowen, Elsa Marino and Louisa Molloy