Imperial won the Prince Albert Challenge Cup at the Henley Rowing Regatta on Sunday 7 July 2013

Five talented Imperial athletes were lucky to experience their emphatic Prince Albert Challenge Cup triumph at Henley on the same day as Murray’s iconic Wimbledon win. Students, Jonny Rankin, Henry Goodier, Ben Spencer-Jones, Tim Richards and Ellie Smith(Cox), floored competitors from Isis Boat Club to win by 3 lengths in a speedy seven minutes. They also won the trophy Imperial presented to the Regatta in 2004 and 2006 when the Men’s Student Coxed Fours became the Prince Albert Challenge Cup.

This year, two Imperial teams qualified out of the twenty eight entrants for the Cup at the annual Henley Royal Regatta, which took place between Wednesday 3 and Sunday 7 July. Crews have been competing in the Regatta since 1839 and today the course is a little over 2 miles long.

Both Imperial teams got through the first day only to face each other in the next round on Thursday. Certain knock-out for one team increased pressure on the crews and the Imperial ‘A’ team ended up coming through with a hugely impressive 4 and ¾ length win. A short break on Friday meant they were fresh and ready to face Durham University for the semi-finals on Saturday, which proved a much closer battle. In the end, they rowed to the final just a length ahead in 7.09 minutes.

With the College having last won the Prince Albert Cup in 2006, this was a meaningful victory for the Boat Club and the perfect way to top off a very successful season. With three wins at Henley Women’s Regatta, 10 gold medals for the Club at the BUCS Regatta in May, National No.1 University in Rowing in the BUCS ranking and picking up Club of the Year at the College’s annual ARCS awards, which seeks to celebrate and appreciate sport at the College, the Boat Club is on top form and looking strong for a superb season next year.