Reading Regatta Victor Ludorum

HENLEY Rowing Club’s Juniors had a successful two days at Reading Amateur Regatta last weekend coming away with the Radley Cup Victor Ludorum for most successful junior club having gained 16 wins.

It was all change for Henley Rowing Club’s J15 boys on Saturday as they competed at a regatta in sweep boats for the first time.

In the morning an eight of Theo Berry, Franco Bigmore Wallace, Flynn Burrows, Miley Vann, Ollie Rowley, James Weeks, Diego Petrosillo, Sebastian Lee and cox Eva-Lilly Worboys raced against Shiplake College, in the semi-final winning easily. In the final the Henley eight defeated St Paul’s School easily.

In the afternoon division the eight split into a coxed quad and coxed four. The quad of Berry, Burrows and Vann joined by Sam Byerley and coxed by Noah Cotton lost in the semi-final to Windsor Boys’ School. The four of Weeks, Bigmore Wallace, Rowley and Lee coxed by Emma Grout beat Shiplake College in the semi-final. In the final the four beat Radley College by three and three-quarter lengths.

Jonty Stanbridge-Bennet raced in the open band 3 category, easing through to the final where he beat a sculler from Walton.

Sunday saw the boys focusing on sculling. The J14 quad of Will Askin, Ethan Taylor, Henry Featherstone, Rohan Shanker and cox Aryaveer Kotwal beat Pangbourne College in the semi-final before beating Shiplake College by two lengths in the final.

The J15 boys’ double scull of Samuel Byerley and Theo Berry won through to the final where they beat Reading Rowing Club by two lengths.

Henley’s J18 boys’ double of Jonty Stanbridge-Bennet and Harrison Bartles-Thiel had a straight final where they beat Reading which saw them wining easily.

The J16 boys’ quad of Maxim Lutsento, Oscar Newson, Charlie Green and Diego Petrosillo beat Hartpury University before easing to a four-length final win against Walbrook Rowing Club.

In the afternoon division the Henley squad had four boys competing in single sculls.

Stanbridge-Bennet, racing in J18, won through to the final, where he beat a sculler from Trent by four lengths.

Bartles-Thiel raced in the J16 event in a straight final against a sculler from Reading. Bartles-Thiel put in another strong performance and won, verdict easily.

Miley Vann and Sebastian Lee both competed in the J15 event. Both were up against scullers from Wallingford Rowing Club. Vann won his semi-final by two lengths and Lee won his by three-and-a-half lengths both in exactly the same time. In the final they both went off well, Lee up initially but Vann pulled back to the overlapping with 300m to go. Lee then put in a push to extend his lead and win by two lengths.

On Saturday Henley girls wins came from the top four of Evie Meeks, Molly Hall, Mima Butterworth, Nicolette Pagdin, cox Elise Pindoria beating Canford School easily in the first round and a comfortable win against Shiplake College in the final.

Competing in a four for the first time the Henley J15 girls’ crew of Fleur Malin, Polina Bezhulyi, Emilia Scott, Emily Robinson and cox Olivia Baker beat Wallingford in the first round and Wimbledon High School in the final.

Henley’s J16 girls won both the fours and eights events. The eight had a straight final against Wallingford and the crew of Grace Haldane, Ella Butler, Lauren Pollard, Daisy Millard, Sophie Floyd, Holly Jackson, Emma Floyd, Scarlett Hyde, cox Anton Otenko won this by three lengths.

The four in the afternoon division of Sophie Floyd, Holly Jackson, Emma Floyd, Scarlett Hyde and cox Anton Otenko beat another Wallingford crew in the first round and in the final had a comfortable win against Lady Eleanor Holles School.

On Sunday Henley’s J13 girls’ crew of Soraya Roughton, Emily Weeks, Amelie Greenstein, Katie Clegg and cox Emma Grout raced in the morning against two crews from Wimbledon High School in the heats and went on to win the final by three lengths against Maidenhead Rowing Club.

The first heat against Wimbledon was won easily after an unfortunate incident saw the opposition snap an oar which slowed them down considerably.

The open J13 crew raced in the afternoon with Henley racing against an all-boys crew from Maidenhead Rowing Club in a straight final. The Henley crew of Henley including Matilda Groh, Ben Freeman, Thomas Leppard and Jasper Chapman with cox Laila Webb won comfortably.