Across The Line: Imogen Grant and George Bourne conquer Wingfield Sculls 2025
Your weekly roundup of all the racing action across the UK
Credit: AllMarkOne
We’re Across The Line! Join us to look back on a worldwide weekend of rowing from Gloucester to Putney and everything in between!
Third time’s the charm for George Bourne as Imogen grant wins her fourth Wingfield Sculls
On a choppy Tideway, six men and six women took to the water to race the 2025 edition of the Wingfield Sculls. Dr Imogen Grant MBE returned as the defending champion and left with a fourth consecutive Wingfield Sculls title.
“It was good fun but it was probably the roughest I’ve had it for the Wingfields,” said Grant who has won more Wingfield Sculls than any other woman.
“It’s not always the fastest person on paper who win, I think that’s what makes it so good. It’s not just that you’ve got to be the best on the day but you’ve also got to have the guts to enter.
“When you go to the prizegiving and Ian Wingfield of the Wingfield family is there and you get to see this weight of history, I think it’s really really special and it’s five years away from its 200th anniversary.”
On the men’s side, Twickenham RC’s Callum Dixon, who won a silver medal in the Men’s Quadruple Scull at the World Rowing Championships in Shanghai, was back to try and make it two wins on the bounce. However, Leander Club’s George Bourne had other ideas as he searched for his first ever win in the event.
“I was stupidly happy to win,” said Bourne who was crowned World Champion in the Men’s Coxless Four earlier this year.
“I was really chuffed and it’s such a prestigious event that I’ve had my eye on since the first time I did it in 2019. It was really cool to finally have my name on that trophy. I’m really pleased.
“I think it’s so cool. When you look at the trophy you think at points Sir Steve Redgrave has been doing this race and winning it, Mahe Drysdale, Greg Searle, and [Guy] Pooley. You’re sat there with Sam Meijer who’s running the whole thing and my coach at Durham was Wade Hall-Craggs who has run the row for the Wingfields so to sit there and think, “Oh, that’s cool, I can join that list,’ is really cool as it’s one of the stalwart races on the Tideway.”
Credit: AllMarkOne
Men’s Race
George Bourne, Leander Club 22:10.12
Matt Long, Reading University BC 22:20.88
Bryn Ellery, Marlow RC 23:04.70
Callum Dixon, Twickenham RC 24:16.65
Max Raymond Barker, Lea RC 24:37.57
Rui Xu 26:14.68
Women’s Race
Imogen Grant, Upper Thames RC 26:07.19
Isabel Lancaster, Reading University BC 26:15.45
Aoife Keane, Molesey BC 26.56.33
Jen Titterington, Newark RC 27:01.90
Isabelle Maxwell, Vesta RC 27.49.69
Hazel Wake, City of Oxford RC 29:53.85
Imogen Bell reports from Gloucester Autumn Head
Credit: Imogen Bell
This weekend at the Gloucester Autumn Head, we saw 257 crews take to the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal for a day of racing. The Great Britain U19 autumn benchmarking event also took place on this day, featuring 65 Singles racing against the clock to determine their eligibility for the GB Rowing Team U19 Programme.
With a sunny morning session, we saw the Gloucester RC Open Eight set a course record, completing the 5000m long course in 17minutes and15 seconds. On the short course, we saw many junior rowers pushing through the water with the Hartpury University & College BC Women’s J15 Double Scull, setting the fastest time for the morning, clocking 7 minutes and 16 seconds. In the U19 Women’s event, we saw Matilda Hudson-Hills from Hartpury University and College BC complete the 5km in an impressive 22 minutes and 19 seconds, winning the event!
Over the lunch break, the clouds set in, and the winds blew through; a cold afternoon session was about to begin. 129 crews braved the cold and rain with the Christchurch RC’s Low CRI Women’s Eight+ setting the day record for the 1750m short course, finishing in 6 minutes and 58 seconds. With drizzling rain set in for the afternoon, it was the City of Bristol RC Open Coxless Four that set the fastest time in the afternoon after completing the 5km in 18 minutes and 32 seconds. In the U19 Men’s event, it was Hartpury University and College BC rower, Max Fullman, who won the event with a time of 19 minutes and 32 seconds!
A huge congratulations to all the rowers who took part in this weekend’s racing.
Credit: Imogen Bell
Check out last week’s results
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That’s all from Across The Line this week!
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