With racing in pairs and double sculls, across time trials, semi finals and into finals, it was an action-packed weekend of exciting racing.

George Bourne and Douwe de Graaf took the win in the Men’s Pair A final ahead of Jake Wincomb and Harry Geffen, with Miles Beeson and Archie Drummond in third.

Douwe said: “Today is huge. These are our teammates. We know how good they are, and there’s also always a bit of rivalry so it’s nice to win it, but, kudos to everyone else, for some great racing in some pretty tough conditions!”

George said: “Every trial really counts and we’re just pleased that we could put down a marker for ourselves today, and start to look forward to the racing season! Last year we came in pretty late because we were both at Cambridge. So now being here, going through the whole process gives us even more excitement now to be racing. and competing with the rest of the squad.”

Eleanor Brinkhoff and Megan Slabbert crossed the finish line first in the Women’s pair A final, second went to Sarah Marshall and Heidi Long with Holly Youd and Katherine George in third.

Speaking after the race, Eleanor said: “We obviously raced the pair last year internationally, and so it’s been really exciting to get back together and to come out on top today.” Megan added: “We struggled at April trials last year and so to win the semis and win the final today, it just means a lot and it sums up a whole year of work for us.”

Tobias Schröder and Cedol Dafydd were victorious in the Men’s double sculls final with James Cartwright and Jamie Gare in second and Ed Fuller and Matt Long in third.

Cedol said: “This has been a really fun project with Tobias. I’m so happy to get back to back wins at April trials and to do it today with Tobias was epic. This is the most intense testing we do in the year. You are racing your teammates, you’re at your home base, there’s other members coming in to try and beat you. And we also have to prove why we’re in the team. But it’s a great weekend and now we can enjoy racing as a team, not against the team!”

Tobias added: “It’s been an intense block building into this because it’s just one step along the way of getting selected and racing all of your teammates and friends is really hard. Everyone wants to do well, and everyone’s really good, so it’s pretty savage, so we’re pleased to get it done! It’s been a long time since I came on top at a trial. I won in November 2017, which was a shock at the time. And along the way, it has felt like I might never get back up there – so to win today is amazing!

The Women’s double sculls final was won by Olympic Champions Lauren Henry and Imogen Grant, with Lola Anderson and Becky Wilde in second and Rebekah Court and Ellie Dash in third.

Lauren said: “It’s always good to come and get the win at April trials. It’s been really fun this year doing this with Imogen. I’ve absolutely loved it. She’s taught me everything she knows about double sculling. She is the queen of the double and I feel fortunate to have had one of the World’s best technical scullers sat in front of me! We’ve had a blast together and it’s been really fun!”

Imogen added: “Rowing is so much fun and it feels like the momentum is building, not just in the country, but within our squad as well. Racing is so much fun and racing in a boat that feels great is an absolute bonus. So I’m stoked to have taken the win with Lauren today. It’s been a really positive weekend from the women’s squad, PBs on the ergo, good performances on the water. I think there’s going to be a lot of competition for seats, which means there’s going to be some really fast boats when we get to international racing!”

For the first time, GB’s Para Men’s PR1 single scullers also took part in April trials. Paralympic, World and European Champion Benjamin Pritchard took the win ahead of Scotland’s Jake Woods. After the race Benjamin said: “Jake has worked hard over the winter and I think that’s a massive PB for him. He really pushed me all the way to the line, so it’s great to have domestic talent that can push you the same as your international counterparts. This is the first time we’ve been included in the final April trials and it’s great, because you do get that kind of massive regatta feeling. You have bow numbers, you have launch times, you have everything that you’d have at an international regatta. So it’s another opportunity to practice something before we go racing.”

After the racing, presentations were made to celebrate the success of the squad over the 2025 season. British Olympic Association (BOA) Athlete of the Year trophies were presented to the inspirational athletes who best promote the Team GB values of Pride, Unity, Responsibility and Respect.

The BOA Female Olympic Athlete of the Year was Stockport’s Sarah McKay. 2025 was Sarah’s first season with the GB Rowing Team, where, with no previous international experience, she became a European Champion and a World Championships Silver medallist. She was hailed as a consummate team player, always empathetic, always cheerful, always supportive and always encouraging of her team mates to reach the highest levels of performance and be all they can be.

The BOA Male Olympic Athlete of the Year was Callum Dixon. Callum, from Tower Hamlets London, embodies pride in representing his nation on the world stage, carries a deep sense of responsibility to his teammates and the sport, and consistently shows respect for both competitors and the rowing community. He also shows unity with his role as Men’s Squad athlete representative where he helps to build a culture where collective strength matters as much as individual achievement.

The Paralympic Athlete of the year for 2025 was Benjamin Pritchard. Benjamin was recognised for his relentless pursuit of performance, his ability to push physical boundaries and his leadership as a role model with the rowing community where he is an outstanding ambassador for Paralympic sport. In 2025, Benjamin’s victory in Shanghai completed his list of accolades to become the reigning European, World and Paralympic Champion. He was also awarded World Rowing Para Crew of the Year. His discipline, resilience and self belief are an inspiration to other athletes, an example to his young daughter and a source of great pride in Wales where he became the first rower, and only 3rd ever Paralympian in the award’s 71 year history to be named winner of BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year.

Finally, the Mark Lees Development Athletes of the Year trophies were presented to Poppy Baker and Harry Geffen. Poppy, who developed her sculling at the GB Performance Development Academy in Nottingham while studying at Nottingham University, was recognised for being part of the U23 Women’s quadruple sculls crew who won a dominant gold medal at the World Rowing U23 Championships in Poznan, Poland.

Harry, just returned to Caversham from his recent Oxford Cambridge Boat Race campaign with Oxford University, was recognised for his exceptional performances across four years as an U23 where he became the first GB athlete to win four successive U23 gold medals in all 3 sweep boat classes (two in the men’s eight, one in the men’s pair and one in the men’s four). Harry was also the youngest GB team member at the World Rowing Championships in Shanghai where he made his senior debut racing in the Men’s pair.

full results

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As the flag drops on race day, Heidi Long will look to lead the women of Oxford University BC to a first Boat Race victory since 2016. As President this season, the Olympic bronze medallist will also set up the rhythm for her crew from the stroke seat. Under her leadership, building on the foundations that Women’s Chief Coach Allan French and previous Presidents have laid, the whole squad seems galvanised and full of gumption in a way the world hasn’t seen for some time. It’s not just the intent and aggression the crews are showing on the water, but the spirit and camaraderie that’s being displayed off the water. It’s infectious.

Both on and off the water, there’s been a steep learning curve as Heidi returns to the labs and libraries for the first time since graduating from the University of Virginia in 2019.

“I learned a lot last year, and I feel like this year, from an academic perspective, I’ve been able to embrace all of the opportunities that come out and enjoy it a lot more, rather than racing to get up to pace,” explained Heidi fresh after her fixture win against Leander.

“I’ve enjoyed being in the lab and working with my supervisor and other lab members. Once you’ve been working on a research project for a year and a half, all of the pieces that you’ve been reading and learning, all of the experiments you’ve been doing, all start to come together, and you get a really clear objective towards your aim that you set two years ago when I started to put this together.

“That’s been really exciting over the past two months, and hopefully we’ll get publications out at the end of it. It’s quite similar to rowing; you put in lots of little pieces, but right at the start, you don’t quite know what’s going to happen. Each time you complete an experiment or a race, you learn more, and you start to see this image appearing at the end of it.”

 

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The balancing act of academics and training by Boat Race athletes is well documented, but amplified further when also keeping yourself primed for national team duties.

“I haven’t always got it right. There have been times I’ve been staying up way too late to get a deadline, and then I’ll wake up not feeling great for training. But, that’s ok, we learn, we get better, and being a part of a team enables you to push through those really hard days.”

After completing the first year of her Master’s, Heidi won a bronze medal with the Women’s Eight at the World Championships in Shanghai. The transition from training at Oxford to Caversham was eased by the support network of coaches, as well as her ability to juggle all the pieces of the puzzle that make up her daily schedule.

“I’ve been able to stay in contact through the trials, and I’ve been supported in building training programmes that work for what I need. I train as much as I can, but try to balance it out. We cycle a lot in Oxford, and that’s something I didn’t do when I was training full-time. My lab is up a hill, so you cycle up the hill sometimes twice a day, depending on training and that builds up quite a training load. It’s about having those conversations to see where training needs to push on and pull back to keep performing.

“When I was at training camp with the GB Rowing Team, I was able to get ahead on a lot of my writing projects. When I came back in our break after the World Champs, I could be in the lab full time because I’d done a lot of the write-up work so it’s about looking ahead to what the year is going to be and fitting it around geographic locations as well as times of high and low stress to make sure all the work gets done in a cohesive manner.”

Support is a key theme at OUBC. Not just from the coaches, but something that is distilled across the squads as everyone pulls together.

Credit: AllMarkOne

“I just love it all. The team is phenomenal, really phenomenal,” said the Olympic bronze medallist.

“My teammates are going to be my closest friends, and they make all of the little things; on the minibuses, training camp, racing, on the water, being in the library together, supporting each other getting work done, the team is so much fun.

“It is an absolute privilege to be President of OUBC. I have found it really hard, but I’ve loved it. Some of the things I love the most are being able to build those relationships with everyone across the team. Not only do I want the boat I’m in to go fast, but I want everyone doing the same. Be it the Reserves, the wider team, or our Development Squad, as well to really enjoy putting in the work and being a part of OUBC and build it for the future.

“Having that role has given me the opportunity to spend a bit more time and energy thinking about what OUBC is and how it will be in the future. I feel really supported by the coaching team, the wider staff at OUBC, my committee, other teammates, but also my girlfriend and my family. It really takes a village, and there’s a reason why we have Eights racing and no singles. It’s a big unit. Without that support, it would be pretty much impossible. I’m very thankful to everyone because it’s made it much more enjoyable. When it has been hard, being able to lean on someone and ask for help has been great to feel supported.”

For the women of OUBC, preparation has been strong. A 22 second win over their rivals from Cambridge University BC at the Head of the Charles Regatta lit a fuse that has been hard to extinguish. Most recently, their fixtures on the Tideway have proved crucial to the fine tuning of their engine.

There was a decisive moment in their racing against Leander Club that felt like a real coming-of-age moment. Approaching Barnes Bridge, Leander’s women were primed to take advantage of their Middlesex station, having drawn level in the minute building up to the key landmark.

However, as both boats emerged from the shadows of the buttresses, it was the dark blues who stepped on, pulling away from their gritty opposition on the outside of the bend. All season, this Oxford unit has felt different from those in previous years, but this ability to put the fixture to bed in such a decisive manner felt like a pivotal moment of growth, at exactly the right time in the season.

Across the years, OUBC have had a steady stream of athletes making the transition from university rowing to full-time training. From Amelia Standing to Juliette Perry and Martha Birtles, there was a dark blue tint to the waters in Shanghai, and it’s important to Heidi that everyone who picks up rowing can visualise this pipeline.

“We raced at Fours Head last year, and a couple of the other girls from Caversham came in, and one of them had learned to row at their college in Oxford. To have those conversations with someone who’s doing exactly the path you want to do is really inspiring. That was quite a special moment for those girls to come back in and share those stories. The time that we get to spend with each other, you start to release we are all exactly the same.

“I feel lucky to be able to join OUBC these last two years and, hopefully, have supported some of those who are going to be the future of GB Rowing because that’s what’s really cool. There is so much potential in this squad, and I really hope they start to believe in themselves and see how far they can push it. It’s not a case of waking up the next day and being ready; it takes years and years. If they can enjoy what they are doing each day here, then hopefully that can set them up, and yes, anything is possible.”

The CHANEL J12 Boat Race will take place Saturday 4 April 2026

14:21 (Women’s Boat Race) and 15:21 (Men’s Boat Race)

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Born with Erb’s Palsy, Frankie never considered herself as disabled. “I knew that I’d had a tricky birth and they had to pull me out, which was why I had an issue with my arm, and growing up I needed to have a lot of physiotherapy. I don’t recall being told ‘you have a disability’, it was more just feeling a little different. The physio would give me lots of work and exercises to try to make it as easy to live with as possible and over time it just became the norm. I thought ‘that’s part of me’ and I got good at adapting my life to it, especially when doing sports when I was younger. I didn’t know Para Rowing existed and had never considered that I would later classify as a Para Rower, let alone become a Paralympic Champion.”

It wasn’t easy. Inspired by cousins and an uncle who all rowed and would take her to regattas in her youth, Frankie fell in love with the sport and was determined to become a rower. “My physio asked me ‘what do you want to do when you grow up?’ and I said, ‘I want to be a rower’. The physio immediately said that wouldn’t work with my Erb’s Palsy. But I think that fused my stubbornness and I became determined to prove the physio wrong!”

She was almost twelve years old when her uncle took her out in a boat for the first time. “I remember going out in the single a few times and it felt amazing. I was going around in circles at first and it became a running joke that I’d go into bushes and pull myself around, but it never registered in my head that my arm was impairing me. I just adapted and got on with it and the love of the sport grew from there.”

It wasn’t long after that that a chance encounter changed the course of her life. Frankie’s uncle was working as a dentist who coincidentally was running dental health checks for all the GBRT athletes about to head to the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and Grace Clough walked in. When Grace told Frankie’s uncle about her own Erb’s Palsy diagnosis, the conversation quickly switched to Frankie and Grace suggested that she meet with the GB coaches and see about getting classified for the Para Rowing programme.

Frankie didn’t waste any time. “After my uncle told me about Grace I went in to see about getting classified pretty quickly. But I was still growing and they asked me to keep up my rowing and come back in a few years time. So I kept rowing at school and while studying at Oxford Brookes University. Grace was really helpful in giving me advice as well as some exercises that she’d been given by the team physio. She was the first person I’d ever met who was like me. Before meeting Grace I thought my arm was something that would restrict me but her success showed me that it was possible to achieve my dream.”

That was enough to keep Frankie focussed and so returned to the GB Rowing Team in October 2021. “I went back after the Tokyo Games and was classified as a PR3. I then went into the trials process and was training with the team from January 2022. It snowballed so quickly, before I knew it I was racing and winning medals at World Rowing Cups, the European and World Rowing Championships and the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.”

One of the things that surprised Frankie the most when joining the GB set up was how staff and athletes already understood her condition. “None of my friends growing up knew that I had Erb’s Palsy and it’s something that I didn’t speak about. So it was quite a shock when I started out at Caversham to hear people come up to me and say ‘you have Erb’s Palsy’. It makes me think that there are probably a lot of people like me in rowing clubs across the country who have grown up needing specialist physiotherapy attention who could follow in my footsteps and join the Para programme. It’s changed my life.”

As for her advice to anyone thinking about joining the Para programme: “If there’s anything that restricts you within rowing that has restricted you over time and you enjoy rowing and want to do it at a high level, there’s no harm in coming in, meeting with the coaches and support team and asking the questions. The worst they can do is say, sorry you don’t classify. The set up is also brilliant whatever level you’re at, from teaching people to row, to those who are further advanced. It accommodates all abilities and the coaches are more specialised to accommodate your disability too. So being on the programme can help you excel because you’re doing training that suits your body and is good for your body rather than doing generalised training at a club.”

For more information on the GB Para Rowing programme visit: /para

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Benjamin Pritchard is World Rowing Para Crew of the Year 2025. Presented with the trophy in person at the Olympic Museum, Benjamin also had an opportunity to mark his name in history by signing the IOC Athletes Wall. The accolade comes just a month after he was crowned BBC Cymru Wales Sports Personality of the Year and caps off a record breaking season for the single sculler.

Benjamin has gone from strength to strength since winning Paralympic gold at Paris 2024. He began 2025 with a best time and European title at the European Rowing Championships in Plovdiv and followed that up with a world best time and his first World title at the World Rowing Championships in Shanghai, cementing his dominance as the World’s leading PR1 single sculler. Uniquely, he currently holds all three Paralympic, World and European titles as well as the championship record time at each of the events.

World Rowing said that Benjamin had “enjoyed a flawless 2025 season on his way to the PR1 Men’s Single Sculls world title in Shanghai. He once again demonstrated his dominance, consistency and competitive edge at the very highest level of Para Rowing. Unbeaten since the 2024 Paralympic Games, Benjamin, who is also a member of both the World Rowing and Paralympics GB Athletes Commission, is a force of nature – both on and off the water.”

“This is an unforgettable honour,” Benjamin said, adding, “I’ve had a very special few days in Lausanne, where I’ve signed the Olympian and Paralympian Wall at the IOC headquarters and then won World Rowing para crew of the year. It’s fantastic to be recognised for my performances this season. I’m still taking it all in – another pinch me moment!”

He added “As athletes, race day can sometimes feel like it gives us our moment. My race might give me nine minutes in the spotlight, but this award is really about everything, and everyone, that makes those nine minutes possible. It’s about the coaches who plan the sessions, the organisers who make races accessible, the volunteers who turn up early and stay late, the officials, the support staff, and the people working behind the scenes who make sure the start line is there for all of us. Without that collective effort, there is no race, and there is no performance. I’m proud to be part of a para sport community that lifts each other up, and I’m thankful to everyone who helps make the start line possible.”

The World Rowing Awards were presented on Saturday evening at the IOC Olympic headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland. Other British nominees included the Coastal Inclusion Mixed Double Sculls of Colin Wallace and Megan Hewison also in the Para crew of the year category, Paralympic Head Coach Nicola Benavente in the Coach of the year category and Lancaster John O’Gaunt Rowing Club in the Rowing Programme of the year category.

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Both the elite and club side of the sport have been recognised in the King’s New Years Honours list 2026.

Paralympic and World Champion Frankie Allen has been awarded an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) for services to Disability Sport and to Improving Access to Sport for Young People. Frankie made her Para rowing debut in 2021 and has established herself in the PR3 Mixed Coxed Four where she has helped the boat maintain its 15 year unbeaten record. A working physiotherapist, Frankie is active in encouraging more young people into sport. “Thank you,” Frankie said, “this means so much to me and I’m grateful to my family, friends and team-mates who have supported me since my first day out on the water.”

Louise Kingsley, Director of Performance for the GB Rowing Team has also been awarded an MBE for her outstanding achievement in the sport and her service to the community.

Louise became GB Rowing Team Director of Performance in December 2021 after spending more than 20 years’ in the sport, initially as a successful coach and then running the governing body’s performance pathway and Paralympic programme. A lifelong sportswoman and accomplished archer, Louise is also a Non-Executive Director at British Shooting.

Under Louise’s stewardship, at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the GB Rowing Team achieved its most successful overseas Olympic Games and its most successful ever by number of medallists, with 36 out of 42 athletes coming home with a medal. Great Britain also topped the Para Rowing medal table at the 2024 Paralympic Games, with three gold and one silver medal making it our best-ever Paralympic Games.

“I feel incredibly honoured to have been awarded an MBE.” Louise said, adding, “It was a total surprise to get the letter and I’m not sure that it’s sunk in yet! I’m very lucky to do a job that I love and be surrounded by so many talented people who turn up day in, day out to help our athletes deliver the best performances they can on the global stage. We came home from Paris 2024 having set new standards and broken records for our performances and we are now fully focussed on how we can build on this as we look ahead to LA 2028.”

Also awarded an MBE for her services to sport is 91ÌÒɫ’s Deputy Chair, Clare Briegal. Clare is a member of Northwich RC, Cambridge University BC and Leander Club. She has rowed since university and is a qualified multi-lane umpire and volunteer rowing administrator. She was Chair of the North West Regional Rowing Council from 2016 to 2022 and was a Trustee of Northwich RC.

Clare was Chief Executive Officer of World Netball (the International Governing Body) from 2012-2024, having moved into sports administration in 2012 following 25 years in sales, marketing and general management. She is an Executive Board member of ARISF (Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations) and is Chair of Sport Liverpool, overseeing the delivery of Liverpool’s major sports events and bidding for future events. She was elected to the 91ÌÒÉ« Board in November 2022 and to the position of Deputy Chair in November 2024.

Recognised with a British Empire Medal (BEM) for his services to rowing and young people in York is York City RC’s Phil Jones, who was awarded the 91ÌÒÉ« Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022 for over three decades of outstanding contributions to York City RC.

The British Empire Medal is awarded for ‘achievement or contribution of a very “hands-on” service to the community in a local geographical area including sustained commitment in support of very local charitable and/or voluntary activity; or innovative work that has delivered real impact.

Phil said: “I don’t suppose many people get the British Empire Medal each year, and there are hundreds of other people in rowing and other volunteers who are at least, if not more worthy than I am. I was very much taken by surprise.

“I feel honoured and I’m mindful of the fact that none of what I achieved would have been possible had it not been for the support from my family, particularly my wife, who had to put up with all the rowing things that I was doing for more than 30 years!”

Also recognised with a British Empire Medal (BEM) for services to rowing is David Pendall, Volunteer Coach at Bedford Rowing Club. David has dedicated decades of service as a volunteer coach, becoming a vital support to Bedford Rowing Club and the community. His commitment has transformed the lives of countless young people to whom he has served as a mentor, educator, and role model.

Commenting on the publication of the list, Diana Hunter, Chair of 91ÌÒÉ« said: “Congratulations to Frankie, Louise, Clare, Phil and David. It’s fantastic to see people across all areas of our sport recognised in the 2026 Honours List. From those who volunteer, coach and inspire people in our clubs and communities to those delivering everyday at the highest level. These awards are wonderful achievements that recognise all the hard work that goes into making our sport successful across the country.”

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Paralympic, World and European champion Benjamin Pritchard has won the BBC Cymru Wales Sports Personality of the Year. This is the first time since the awards began in 1954 that a rower has won the trophy, which is recognised as the most prestigious annual sports award in Wales. Benjamin is also only the third para athlete to win this trophy, alongside Olivia (Livvy) Breen and Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson.

Benjamin has gone from strength to strength since winning Paralympic gold at Paris 2024. He began 2025 with a best time and European title at the European Rowing Championships in Plovdiv and followed that up with a world best time and his first World title at the World Rowing Championships in Shanghai, cementing his dominance as the World’s leading PR1 single sculler. Just last weekend he also won the PR1 Open 2000m at the 91ÌÒÉ« Indoor Championships for the third time. Uniquely, he currently holds all three Paralympic, World and European titles as well as the championship record time at each of the events.

BBC Wales interrupted his training session at the Redgrave Pinsent Rowing Lake, home of the GB Rowing Team, to surprise him with the BBC Cymru Wales Sports Personality of the Year trophy. Admiring the historic silverware, a very emotional Benjamin said: “I am lost for words. I’m a massive sports fan and look at the legends who have won before me
 People like Geraint Thomas, Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, Sir Gareth Edwards and Alun Wyn Jones, and now I’m on there too! Thank you – I’m really chuffed to be recognised for my rowing career. My family won’t believe this. They’ll be so happy and proud!

“This is recognition for all the hard work that’s gone into this project over the years. Thank you to everyone who has helped me along the way, from my wife, friends and family to all the coaches and staff at 91ÌÒÉ« and in Swansea. Nine years ago I was in a hospital bed aiming to live my life again and dreaming of going to a Paralympic Games and here I am winning the most prestigious award in Welsh sporting history. It’s amazing and means so so much.”

Louise Kingsley, 91ÌÒÉ« Director of Performance said: “Congratulations to Benjamin for his excellent results over the last 12 months and thank you to BBC Wales for recognising his achievements. Great Britain is the World’s most successful para rowing programme and we are continually on the look out for passionate, talented athletes to join the programme. What better time to contact our coaches and see if you have what it takes to be part of this exceptional team!”

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World Rowing has announced nominations for the World Rowing Awards 2025, with four nominations for Great Britain. Paralympic, World and European Champion Benjamin Pritchard is nominated for Para crew of the year alongside the Coastal Inclusion Mixed Double Sculls of Colin Wallace and Megan Hewison. Paralympic Head Coach Nicola Benavente is in the Coach of the year category. At domestic level, Lancaster John O’Gaunt Rowing Club has been nominated for Rowing Programme of the year for their Refugee Integration Programme. Winners will be announced at a glittering event at the IOC Olympic headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland on Saturday, 24 January 2026.

Benjamin Pritchard has gone from strength to strength since winning Paralympic gold at Paris 2024. He began 2025 with a best time and European title in Plovdiv and followed that up with a world best time and his first World title in Shanghai, cementing his dominance as the World’s leading PR1 single sculler. Just last weekend he also won the PR1 Open 2000m at the 91ÌÒÉ« Indoor Championships for the third time.

He’s on the World Rowing and British Paralympic Association’s athlete commissions and ends 2025 nominated as World Rowing Paralympic crew of the year. “It’s overwhelming,” he said, adding, “I’ve always known that if I keep the focus and keep training the results will come. I’m now Paralympic, World and European Champion and have broken records at each! Thanks to World Rowing for recognising these achievements and I’m honoured to be nominated for this award that’s been won by so many fantastic, talented athletes before me.”

This year the Inclusion Mixed double sculls (INMix2x) was recognised as a World Champion event at the World Beach Sprint Finals. 2024 defending champion Colin Wallace, and new partner Megan Hewison breezed through their races and made history taking the gold to become the first ever World Champions in this event.

Colin said: “It still feels incredible to be an official World Champion and being nominated here is the icing on the cake. It’s just amazing. I hope that this inspires more people to get involved in Para Rowing and that more Para Beach events will be introduced.”

Promoted into the Head Coach position just over 12 months ago, Nicola Benavente has shown true class in continuing to lead and develop Great Britain’s Paralympic programme. Her collaborative coaching style has helped her athletes thrive and under her leadership Great Britain’s Paralympic crews won two gold medals at the Shanghai World Championships which included the PR3 Mixed coxed four maintaining their exceptional 14 year unbeaten run.

Louise Kingsley, 91ÌÒÉ« Director of Performance said: “Thank you to World Rowing for recognising Nicola, Benjamin, Colin and Megan’s excellent work over the last 12 months. Great Britain is the World’s most successful para rowing programme and we are continually on the look out for passionate, talented athletes to join the programme. What better time to contact our coaches and see if you have what it takes to be part of this exceptional team!”

Nominated for Rowing programme of the year for their ‘Refugee Integration Programme’, Lancaster John O’Gaunt Rowing Club is one of the oldest clubs in the UK, run by its members who all volunteer their time to keep the club thriving. The club offers inclusive and affordable ‘Learn to Row’ courses and works with schools, universities and the city council to drive opportunities for people from all backgrounds to get involved in rowing. In 2017, Lancaster was named a City of Sanctuary. This announcement designated the Northwest city as a place of safety. Inspired by this, Lancaster John O’Gaunt RC developed a programme which uses rowing to support the integration of refugees and asylum seekers in the community. The club provides a safe, welcoming space to some of society’s most vulnerable people.

Nathaniel Reilly-O’Donnell, Director of Development at 91ÌÒÉ« commented: “Congratulations to everyone at Lancaster John O’Gaunt Rowing Club for this outstanding recognition from World Rowing. To be nominated in this category amongst clubs from across the world is true testament to the work they do in opening doors and providing opportunities for new people to get involved in rowing across Lancaster. Their passion and commitment to the sport is evident in all the work they do and I wish them the best of luck for the awards evening in January. Fulham Reach Boat Club won this award in 2024 so it’s fantastic to see British clubs consistently recognised for doing great work on the world stage!”

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Olympic silver medallist and two-time Olympian Tom Barras has retired from international rowing.

Tom began rowing in 2005 aged eleven at Burway RC and made his senior international debut winning bronze at World Cup 1 in the Men’s quadruple sculls in 2017. He had several successful seasons in the Men’s single sculls but switched back into the Men’s quadruple sculls and was selected in this boat for the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Here, together with Jack Beaumont, Harry Leask and Angus Groom, Tom achieved his dream by winning a silver medal. The second place finish saw the quad make history as Team GB’s first ever Olympic medal in that boat class. He remained in the quad for the Paris Olympiad, where they narrowly missed out on the 2024 Olympic podium with a fourth place finish after illness interrupted their preparations in the last two weeks of the campaign.

Outside of rowing, Tom is a qualified physiotherapist who studied at Cardiff University and has managed his time well to gain experience and work in his chosen professional field alongside his rowing whilst in the Senior Team

Explaining his decision, Tom said: “After nine unforgettable years on the 91ÌÒÉ« Team, and with a heavy heart, I have decided it’s the right time to retire. I have loved my time here, I must have! The hatred of the training: 20k ergos, 2k tests, Sierra Nevada, yet still I came back, every day for nine years. Somehow that mix of pain and purpose kept me coming back for more. This year however, I felt that age and life finally caught up with me, and it quickly became apparent that this would be the appropriate time to step away from the World stage.”

“I feel incredibly grateful for everything this journey has given me. The experiences, the people and the pride of representing Great Britain. A career that a younger me, a ten year old boy stood outside Burway RC, could never have imagined. I feel fortunate to end my career as a multiple World medallist, double Olympian, and to share in a special piece of British Olympic history, as part of the first British quadruple scull to win an Olympic medal.”

Tom also wanted to pay tribute to his fellow team-mates and the team behind the team: “I would love to thank all the fantastic athletes I have had the privilege to train and race with year after year. They have pushed and inspired me, making every single day (even the hard ones) worth it. Also, a huge thank you to all the coaches, physios, doctors and physiologists who have supported and guided me throughout my time at Caversham. Their patience, persistence and belief have not only shaped my rowing career, but also who I am today.

“Massive credit and thanks must also go to the chefs, for the great food that has kept me fuelled, the boatmen for ensuring we always have the best and most well looked after equipment, and the behind the scenes teams for putting together the most amazing kit, competitions and training camps. Without the support of this fantastic group of people, there is no doubt that I would not have had the career and successes I have had.”

Men’s Olympic head coach Paul Stannard, who directly coached Tom said: “It has been hard work coaching Tom over the last 9 seasons
 but thoroughly enjoyable! Watching Tom grow and mature over the years has been incredibly rewarding. Tom came to the Senior team as a single sculler having been told by a number of coaches that he wasn’t any good in crew boats! In his first year with us he won a spectacular bronze medal behind sculling legends Ondrej Sinek and Angel Fournier Rodriguez and ahead of Robbie Manson who had set the World Best Time in June of that year. Once settled in the squad, Tom did improve his crew sculling and was a key part of the history-making Silver-medal-winning Quad in Tokyo in extremely tough conditions at the height of the covid pandemic. Tom has achieved a great deal in his time with the team and I look forward to his continued support of the team as he has committed to working with us as a physio in the years to come!”

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The GB Rowing Team are travelling to Birmingham to take part in the World’s largest in-person indoor rowing event – the 91ÌÒÉ« Indoor Championships (BRIC) on December 6th. Olympians, Paralympians, World Championship and World Cup medallists will be taking to the floor to row 2km at the National Exhibition Centre. After racing, several members of the squad will be presenting medals to winners from other races and hosting a meet and greet.

Louise Kingsley, 91ÌÒÉ« Director of Performance said: “The 2km race at BRIC will form part of the 2026 GB Squad trials process so we can expect the athletes to give their all and produce their best performances in the intense cauldron with cheering crowds to push them through the final kms.”

The winner of last year’s women’s 2km was Olympic Champion and 2025 World Cup winner, Lauren Henry. She’ll be back to defend her title. The Leicesterian is relishing the thought of taking to the BRIC floor amongst her peers: “This will be a good opportunity to test out our early season fitness. Everyone is going to want to put a good showing down and see where we can build through the season.”

Describing the atmosphere as “electric”, Lauren also enjoys the sports presentation at the event, “When I’m doing my 2km, I’m so dialled in that I don’t really see what else is going on apart from being on the machine. But BRIC is really cool because you can see how you’re placing. Normally we don’t know where we are until we finish, but here we have everyone’s scores live on the screens so you can see if you’re winning and how far ahead you are!”

Lauren has fond memories of attending BRIC as a junior and is looking forward to meeting with athletes from across the country: “It’s so nice to engage with the wider community because a lot of the time we’re just racing internationally. I remember attending BRIC in 2016 and I got some photos with members of the GB Rowing Team. The photo of me with John Collins and Jonny Walton is still on the wall at Leicester Rowing Club. It’ll be really cool to be on the other side of that!”

Olympian, World silver medallist and World Cup winner, Matt Haywood is also looking forward to coming back to Birmingham, with it only being a short distance from his hometown of Burton-on-Trent. “I’ve been doing this event since it was in the Velodrome in London, but I think that it’s great to be able to come to Birmingham and have the event in a city that’s more central in the country. It opens it up to so many more people and more clubs. Plus it’s great that my friends and family can come and cheer me on!”

The huge crowd is also something Matt is relishing: “BRIC is a rare opportunity to perform indoors in front of a large crowd. Having people facing you is a weird sensation, but it’s a good experience to see how we handle the nerves of having the crowd staring you in the eyes. If you can deal with that, then you can pretty much deal with any crowd and any environment! It’s also lovely to know that by being there we can help inspire the next generation in the sport. It’s a really positive thing to give back a little bit to the rowing community at large.”

The expected athletes racing on Saturday 6 December are:

Women’s squad, clubs and hometowns:

Lola Anderson (Leander Club / Newcastle University BC) (Hometown: Richmond)

Poppy Baker (Nottingham RC) (Hometown: Derby)

Martha Birtles (Oxford Brookes University BC / Oxford University BC) (Hometown: Rossendale, Lancashire)

Eleanor Brinkhoff (Leander Club) (Hometown: Cheltenham)

Angharad Broughton (Molesey BC) (Hometown: Cardiff)

Annie Campbell-Orde (Nottingham RC / Leander Club) (Hometown: Wells, Somerset)

Katherine George (Leander Club / Princeton University) (Hometown: Oxford)

Imogen Grant (Cambridge University BC) (Hometown: Cambridge)

Lauren Henry (Leicester RC) (Hometown: Lutterworth, Leicestershire)

Lauren Irwin (Leander Club / Durham University / Chester-le-Street ARC) (Hometown: Peterlee, County Durham)

Jade Lindo (Molesey BC / Twickenham RC) (Hometown: Molesey/Cranleigh, Surrey)

Sarah McKay (Leander Club / Grosvenor RC) (Hometown: Stockport)

Cam Nyland (Leander Club) (Hometown: Warrington)

Vwairé Obukohwo (Twickenham RC) (Hometown: Brixton)

Juliette Perry (Leander Club / Oxford University BC) (Hometown: Petersfield)

Hannah Scott (Bann RC / Leander Club) (Hometown: Coleraine, Northern Ireland)

Megan Slabbert (Molesey BC) (Hometown: Richmond)

Amelia Standing (Oxford University BC) (Hometown: Helsby, Cheshire)

Eve Stewart (Leander Club) (Hometown: Amsterdam)

Fionnuala Stratton (Reading University BC) (Hometown: Cardiff)

Rebecca Wilde (Leander Club / Bath University BC) (Hometown: Taunton)

Lizzie Witt (Leander Club / Imperial College BC) (Hometown: Richmond)

Holly Youd (Molesey BC) (Hometown: Thames Ditton)

Men’s squad athletes, clubs and hometowns:

Matt Aldridge (Christchurch RC) (Hometown: Christchurch, Dorset)

Miles Beeson (Leander Club) (Hometown: Aberdeen)

David Bewicke-Copley (Oxford Brookes University BC) (Hometown: Lutterworth, Leicestershire)

George Bourne (Cambridge University BC) (Hometown: Cambridge)

Joshua Bowesman-Jones (Leander Club) (Hometown: Derby)

James Cartwright (Leander Club) (Hometown: Gloucester)

Cedol Dafydd (Leander Club / Bath University BC) (Hometown: Bangor, North Wales)

Callum Dixon (Twickenham RC) (Hometown: Tower Hamlets, London)

Archie Drummond (Leander Club) (Hometown: Twickenham)

Jamie Gare (Leander Club / City of Cambridge RC) (Hometown: Haverhill, Suffolk)

Douwe de Graaf (Cambridge University BC / Leander Club) (Hometown: London)

Dan Graham (Leander Club) (Hometown: Newcastle)

Matt Haywood (Nottingham RC / Burton Leander RC) (Hometown: Burton on Trent, Staffordshire)

Rory Harris (Leander Club / Reading University BC) (Hometown: Virginia Water, Surrey)

Toby Lassen (Oxford Brookes University BC / Great Marlow Swans) (Hometown: Marlow, Bucks)

Sam Nunn (Oxford Brookes University BC) (Hometown: Bexleyheath)

James Robson (Cambridge University BC / Leander Club) (Hometown: Bury St Edmunds and Newcastle)

Matt Rowe (Leander Club / Oxford Brookes University BC) (Hometown: Teddington, Middlesex)

Tobias Schröder (Leander Club / Oxford University BC) (Hometown: Nottingham)

Will Stewart (Newcastle University BC) (Hometown: Esher, Surrey)

James Vogel (Leander Club) (Hometown: Pinner, London)

Fergus Woolnough (Oxford Brookes University BC) (Hometown: Gloucester)

Para Rowing squad, clubs & hometowns:

Josh O’Brien (Molesey BC) (Hometown: Naseby, Northamptonshire)

Benjamin Pritchard (City of Swansea RC) (Hometown: Mumbles, Swansea)

The post World and Olympic Medallists to race alongside fitness lovers at the World’s largest indoor rowing event appeared first on 91ÌÒÉ«.

We’re at that point of the season where hundreds of athletes have already made their pilgrimage to Boston RC. For years the club in Lincolnshire has welcomed scullers and sweepers from across the country to lay down their best performance at Trials. At the same time, they set an early-season marker for coaches selecting teams for international duties at the business end of the season.

For U23s and seniors, the first weekend in November had been circled long in advance. A 2000m ergo test at the Princess Royal Sports Arena was followed by a 5000m water assessment on the infamous Boston race track. While the first round of junior trialling has switched to autumn benchmarking events at regional races, the consistent metric across the age categories is diligent preparation and building well over the coming weeks and months.

At this first opportunity for athletes to put their hand in the air and impress selectors, Men’s Olympic Head Coach Paul Stannard was clear in what he was expecting.

“I wanted to see a very strong erg result on the Saturday,” he explained.

“The published erg cutoffs are purely that – the minimum standard required to participate. Successful candidates will be significantly under 6:00 for U23 and Senior athletes. We then want to see this backed up on the water. In the last two years, we’ve required male athletes who receive any form of funding to scull. If you’re a sweeper who’s sculling, give it your best, don’t make an excuse or treat it with less focus than if you were in a pair. In a pair, be competitive with the top scullers.”

GB Rowing Team athletes who raced at the World Championships in Shanghai this year were exempt from this round of trialling. For Women’s Olympic Head Coach Andrew Randall, this part of the season is significant ahead of December Trials, as it’s about aligning athletes training at clubs with those who are at the National Training Centre in Caversham on a daily basis.

“We try to make trialling very standard on the women’s side,” summarised Andrew.

“I’ll be sending the programme out to all the coaches who are coaching the invitees. This is because it’s important to have a level playing field so that people do the same work running in. We have a couple of activities going on that we want all the invitees to go to. The first of those is a 5000m ergometer test rate capped at 26, followed by a 2000m trial regatta, where we’ll do a time trial and race.

“The following weekend is the 91ÌÒÉ« Indoor Championships, and we want to use BRIC as their 2000m selection for the ergometer performance alongside the Men’s Squad, and then we will follow that two weeks later with trials. If we can get all the invitees doing the same kind of thing, then we can compare apples with apples come Trials time.

“Otherwise, it can get very difficult because I’ll be working Caversham athletes quite hard and not doing any race work, but the clubs could be doing a lot less volume and a lot more race work, so you can’t really compare apples and oranges.”

For both juniors trialling for the first time or seasoned veterans returning for another international campaign, the coming weeks are of the utmost importance. With cold, damp weather setting in and flu season right around the corner, looking after your body has never been more critical.

Just this weekend, juniors have been racing at the likes of Inverness Head and Boston Junior Sculling Head, and rest and recuperation is just as important for them as it is for older athletes doing two days of trialling a couple of weeks ago.

“If done properly, it should be a tough weekend with a maximal 2000m erg and maximum 5000m water performance on back-to-back days,” explained Paul.

Back in 2009, Stannard was looking after the GB Performance Development Academy in Bath, and similar philosophies applied 16 years ago as they still do today. Olympic Champions Helen Glover and Heather Stanning were training hard alongside Olympic silver medallist Vicky Thornley, and as part of their prep for Boston trials they had a weekend where they raced to their limit with a 2000m ergo on the Friday, headed straight to Wallingford Head for both divisions of racing on the Saturday and then did the Marlow Rowathlon on the Sunday.

Recovering off the back of the trials weekend should have as much thought as for the trial itself. “For younger athletes or athletes with further travel, it might be appropriate to have Monday off. For more experienced athletes, it’s more likely to be appropriate to continue training but maybe do a session or two less in the first two-three days. Focus on rest, nutrition and core or stretching around your main training sessions to recover well and prep for the next block of training. This is very individual however based on distance travelled, training age, school/uni/work requirements, etc.

Preparing well and giving your best on the day is key in Andrew’s view. As Andrew explains, “It’s a matter of them getting the best out of themselves; that’s what we call high performance, performing on the day you need to perform. You can’t do it on another day. We know when the World Championships are or when the Olympics are, and we know what day we need to perform.

“That’s why Sir Steve Redgrave was outstanding and a real role model. For five Olympics in a row he was right on that day and won five Olympic gold medals which is pretty hard to do. He managed to get himself right on those five occasions every time. It’s hard to do and very impressive. That’s the mentality we’re trying to build into our athletes.”

Both Paul and Andrew stress the importance of getting as much information out of those who have already walked the path of Trials. Learning from past experiences allows athletes to come in with an idea of what to expect, making sure they are well informed and aware of everything that could occur. Preparation for every marker in the calendar begins long before ‘Attention, Go’ is called at each of the start lines.

“Be careful whose advice you ask for, but then listen to the advice.

“It’s a long weekend and there’s lots of simple things that you can do to maximize your performance before you even step foot on an ergo or in a boat – plan the logistics – accommodation, transport, etc so there’s no last minute surprises. Plan your nutrition – hire accommodation with a kitchen or book a decent restaurant before the weekend. Most importantly, READ THE INFORMATION PROVIDED by the GB Rowing Team. 99% of everything you need to know should be in there,” emphasised Paul.

All information about trialling for the Great Britain Rowing Team can be found here.

You can join the GB Rowing Team at the 91ÌÒÉ« Indoor Championships in Birmingham 6-7 December.

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