Evesham wins VL at Warwick Regatta
The 26th Warwick Regatta lived up to its billing of ‘an event for the whole club with racing for all ages and abilities’ – this is exactly what was offered at Warwick Boat Club on Saturday 16th August.
A total of 109 races were held on the 500m course with Warwick Castle in the background as the crews raced towards the finish. The competitors ranged from juniors to masters and the regatta also offered ‘primary’ events for people new to the sport.
The junior, primary and novice events were run as round-robin leagues where crews had two races each and the two with the most wins proceeded to the final. The club has been offering this racing format for many years and it has proved a great selling point with crews racing hard to qualify for the final.
The primary events attracted a good entry this year with Carolina Lopez Margolles from Ross RC winning both the women’s primary single and double sculls. Close racing was seen in the primary coxed fours with Milton Keynes winning the open event while Stratford’s King Edward VI School won the women’s.
As always, the regatta was well supported by Evesham RC who sent a large entry. Their efforts paid off when they won the Victor Ludorum after taking nine of the events.
Evesham junior coach Abi Terry said, “Warwick Regatta is always one of the first events to be highlighted for Evesham on the racing calendar at the start of the year.
“It’s always very welcoming and everybody is friendly. We all really enjoy Warwick Regatta and use it mainly for our juniors, beginner/novice adults and masters. This year was no exception!”
She added, “Winning the Victor Ludorum with nine wins was a highlight to the end of a fantastic days racing.”
Evesham also picked up the ‘Warwick Goblets’ which were presented to Andrea Griffiths for victory in the women’s novice single sculls.
The Berkley brothers from Shiplake Vikings RC also had a very successful day. In the morning, Harry beat the home club comfortably in the final of the novice singles with Tom teaming up with Anna Davies to also beat Warwick in the mixed intermediate 3 double sculls.
In the afternoon, the brothers joined forces to race in the novice double sculls where they beat Warwick once again with a verdict of ‘easily’.
The day was concluded with the annual grudge match between the club’s tennis and squash sections resulting in a win for squash by a comfortable margin.
Full results from the regatta will soon be available at www.warwickboatclub.co.uk.
By James Lee
