Imperial emerges victorious at the Henley Royal Regatta

Imperial students rowed to victory this weekend, one of the most prestigious rowing events in the sporting calendar.

The College crew won the Prince Albert Challenge Cup, an event contested by men’s student crews in coxed fours.

The 164th Henley Royal Regatta, which opened on Wednesday, saw Club captain Ben Spencer-Jones (Medicine), Henry Goodier (Medicine), Tim Richards (Medicine), Jonny Rankin (Mechanical Engineering) and cox Ellie Smith (Medicine) battle against some of the best university rowing crews in the country.

Led by Head Coach, Stuart Whitelaw, Imperial’s students began training for Henley last September.

After wins against Bath, a second Imperial crew and Durham, the coxed four went on to compete against Oxford in the final on Sunday, winning by three lengths.

Cox Ellie Smith said: “There was definitely a lot of excitement but a lot of nerves too. Henley is a really big deal because everyone in the rowing world has heard of it and so it means a lot to people. As a result people pull out all the stops when they compete at Henley.”

Ellie added: “It was incredible to win, I’ve heard about Henley for so long and having raced for ten years, to finally compete and win here is a dream come true.”

It is the first time that Imperial's Boat Club has won the Cup since 2006. The victory is particularly symbolic because the event’s origins are closely associated with Imperial. The Cup was donated to the event by Imperial in 2006 and the College crest is incorporated in the design.

Neil Mosley, Head of Sport Imperial said: “The win by Imperial’s Boat Club is a fabulous achievement and tops off a wonderful rowing season. The crew worked so well together combining power and grace to get to the finish line. On behalf of everyone at Imperial, I’d like to congratulate the crew and the support team on their remarkable achievements.” 

Photos courtesy of Ian Gillett.