The
bank holiday weekend was one of achievement and celebration for Shiplake
College, as the school’s Boat Club recorded unprecedented success at National
Schools’ Regatta. The prestigious event is the pinnacle of the schools’ rowing
calendar, providing an opportunity for the nation’s best young talent to battle
for school pride.The Boat Club entered 78 students, from different year groups, across
15 events over the course of the three day regatta.
For
the first time since 1986, Shiplake’s senior 1st VIII claimed gold
in the Child Beale Cup, seeing off the likes of Latymer Upper, Bedford School
and Reading Blue Coat in the final, which they led from start to finish. Having
come away with a silver medal last year, the boys were incredibly motivated to
improve on last year’s performance, and dominated the field from start to
finish. A delighted 1st VIII coach Hugh Mackworth-Praed commented:
“Victory in this event is a fitting milestone of the progress the College has
made in recent years, and the boys have now earned the right to test themselves
against the country’s fastest schools throughout the summer.”
Shiplake’s
J16 IV showed the future is extremely bright with astonishing performances in
the premier ‘championship’ race category. The J16 IV of Seb Newman, Henry
Blois-Brooke, Hugo Oglina and Christian Hjortland-Marks claimed silver medals
in their final, finishing narrowly behind Eton College. The Year 11 quartet were joined
by teammates in the Championship VIIIs event, missing out on a medal by just
0.23 of a second. Despite the disappointment of finishing fourth, the boys should take great heart from their performance after seeing off competition from the likes of Hampton, Radley, Abingdon and St Paul’s
to name a few.
These results rank Shiplake amongst the very
best schools in the UK, and the boys are eager to press on over the next two
years to replicate this success at senior level.
The College entered multiple boats in the J14 and J15 age groups and once again, the boys did a fantastic job. Two J14 octuples made the semi-finals, while the J15 VIII narrowly missed out on qualification. The senior girls' squad entered a IV+ and once again enjoyed the experience of competitive racing.
Director of Rowing Mr Dave Currie added: “These results were
a product of all the hard work and commitment demonstrated by the students and
coaching team across the year. I would like to thank everyone that has enabled
the College to perform so well this year. Special thanks must go
to Alison Davies who gave up her weekend to ensure the athletes were all
suitably fed and hydrated over the weekend, and all the parents and families who made the trip to support our rowers. Shiplake College is a true team."