Strong GB team announced for 2013 EUSA Rowing Champs

A team of over 50 students has been announced to compete at the 8th European Universities Rowing Championships, which will be held in Poznan, Poland, from 5th – 8th September 2013.

Drawn from 11 different Universities across the country, the team comprises crews who finished in the top four in their respective events at the BUCS Regatta earlier this year. The crews also bring a strong pedigree of experience and medals from the World Cup events and World Rowing U23 Championships.

The squad representing Great Britain at the World Rowing Championships in Chungju, South Korea, which starts on Sunday contains many rowers for whom the EUSA Rowing Championships was their first step on the International Pathway. Polly Swann represented Edinburgh University at the 2009 Championships, where she won gold in the women’s pair by eight seconds. This season Polly, rowing alongside London 2012 gold medallist Helen Glover, has won gold at all three of the World Rowing Cups in the same boat. In 2010 Jamie Kirkwood missed out on gold by just over one second at the EUSA Rowing Championships in Amsterdam. Jamie has since worked his way into the GB Rowing Team and will race in the lightweight men’s single in Chunju next week.

For the 2013 Championships, Newcastle University will field a Women’s Eight and Men’s Four. The Women’s Eight includes the crew which won the Senior coxed fours at Henley Women’s Regatta this year, including Nicole Lamb who went on to win a silver medal representing Great Britain at the World U23 Rowing Championships. Also in the crew is Gemma Hall who has raced as a lightweight all season winning two events at Henley Women’s Regatta and a bronze medal in the lightweight women’s quad at the World U23 Championships.

Two of her crewmates from the U23s will represent the University of London; Rosa Atkinson who will race in the lightweight women’s single scull and Emily Craig who will join Jade Wright in the lightweight women’s double scull.

A strong squad from Imperial College will include Wilf Kimberley who won silver in the lightweight men’s pair at the World U23s. He will join forces with Tim Richards who also won silver at the U23s and crewmates Paul Jones and Myles Holbrough. The Imperial line-up will also include four of the women who won multiple medals at the BUCS Regatta in May.

Two out of the three rowers representing Robert Gordon University competed at the World U23 Championships earlier in the year. Iona Riley who will join Christie Duff in the Women’s double scull won a silver medal in the Women’s eight, whilst Lewis McCue who will race in the single scull competed in the men’s coxed four which won the B final. 

Also from the U23 Women’s eight is Jo Wratten who will represent Teesside University in the women’s single scull.

Four crews from Durham University will race, with the men’s coxless pair featuring Francis Highton who raced in the men’s four at the World Rowing U23 Championships.

“The EUSA Rowing Championships attracts high quality crews from the top rowing nations across Europe,” said Team Manager James Lee. “We have been really lucky to pull together a very strong squad including many of the crews who won gold medals in their category at the BUCS Regatta. To have 12 rowers who have already raced at the World U23 Championships earlier this year shows the attraction of the EUSA Rowing Championships. Poznan is a great venue and we’re all looking forward to some excellent racing.”

Heats will be on Friday 6th September, with finals on Sunday 8th. Full details on the event can be found at http://www.rowing2013.eusa.eu/.

GB Universities

Cardiff University
Tom Barras, Robbie Massey, Jack Thomas, Sam Whittaker

University of Durham
Andrew Brown, James Gossage, Camilla Hadland, Francis Highton, William Mace, Eve Newton, Oscar Richards, Joanna Thom, Samuel Tuck, Anna Tyndall

University of Edinburgh
Georgina Grandfield, Joanna Smith

University of Exeter
Charlotte Dexter, Jessica Elkington, Emma Townshend, Hannah Trawylen

Imperial College, London
Myriam Goudet, Myles Holbrough, Paul Jones, Wilf Kimberley, Timothy Richards, Hannah Patterson, Georgie Phillips, Michelle Vezie

University of London
Rosa Atkinson, Emily Craig, Jade Wright

University of Manchester
Hugh Gallie

Newcastle University
Harriet Broad, Alexandra Dobson, Thomas Ford, Gemma Hall, Danielle Hardy, Natalie Hardy, Nicole Lamb, Alexander Leigh, Georgia Parry, James Rudkin, Rosemary Rust, Isabella Vyvyan, Samuel Wilson

University of Nottingham
William Davey, George McKirdy, Artjom Nepryahin, Stuart Sykes

Robert Gordon University
Christie Duff, Lewis McCue, Iona Riley

Teesside University
Josephine Wratten

Management Team & Coaches

James Lee (Team Manager)
Paddy Hudson (Driver)

Jesse Burgoine (Newcastle)
Katherine Copeland (Teesside)
John Higson (Edinburgh)
Mike Hughes (Robert Gordon)
Cameron Kennedy (Durham)
Don LeClair (Durham)
Edward Previte (Durham)
Alan Sherman (Exeter)
Ian Shore (Cardiff)
Alex Simmons (London)
Chris Waumsley (Nottingham)
Stuart Whitelaw (Imperial College)