Ho C R

Supercrews, snow and spirited racing at the Charles

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20/10/2009 11:47

In amongst the 8,800 athletes at the Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston, USA, was a grouping of 16 of the world’s best. A men’s and women’s super eight, all-star crew had come together to race in the championship eights event.

The men’s Great8 included seven top Olympic scullers Alan Campbell (GBR), Tim Maeyens (BEL), Marcel Hacker (GER), Mahe Drysdale (NZL), Ondrej Synek (CZE), Iztok Cop (SLO) and Lassi Karonen (SWE), plus America’s top single sculler Warren Anderson. Despite a broken rudder the crew swept to a full 12-second victory.

As snow fell towards the end of the cold and blustery two-day regatta the men’s eight warmed up only to break the rudder before the start line. In fast-thinking, boat-docking precision, a new, albeit smaller, rudder was installed and the crew pulled into the start just in time. But about 800m into the race the rudder broke. British coxswain Ali Williams moved to plan B. Williams put her hand into the chilly Charles River waters while bow man Maeyens stopped rowing to enable the boat to navigate around the corners and through the many bridges.

The University of California Berkeley finished second behind the Great8 with last year’s winners, University of Washington, coming in third just ahead of the US national team. Germany’s under-23 crew finished sixth ahead of France in seventh. Last year’s second place getters, Brown University, were fifth this year.

Members of the men’s Great8 also competed in doubles and singles. Karonen and Drysdale both raced in the championship men’s single finishing second and fourth respectively. The single was won by American Michael Sivigny. Last year’s winner, New Zealand’s Nathan Cohen, finished third after he picked up a 10-second penalty for missing a buoy which put him out of the top spot.

The remainder of the Great8 raced in the men’s double. Synek and Maeyens finished second followed by teammates Hacker and Campbell in fourth and Anderson and Cop in fifth. The double was won by Americans Tom and Peter Graves. The brothers raced for the US at this year’s World Rowing Championships. Third place was taken by the German double of Mathias Rocher and Tim Bartels. Rocher finished fifth in the single at this year’s World Rowing Championships while Bartels won bronze in the quad.

The women’s “Super Shark” eight made up of Femke Dekker and Nienke Kingma of the Netherlands, Anna Bebington and Annie Vernon of Great Britain, Canadian Jane Rumball, Susan Francia and Erin Cafaro of the United States and New Zealander Emma Twigg dominated their race. Rowing under the name of Dekker’s club, ASR Nereus, the crew finished 24 seconds ahead of the US national team in second. Yale University was third.

Twigg and Rumball also raced against each other in the women’s single. Twigg finished third behind South African lightweight Ursula Gobler-James (first) and last year’s winner, Gevvie Stone of the United States (second). Rumball came through in ninth position.

The women’s double was won easily by top US duo, Megan Kalmoe and Ellen Tomek. Canadian’s Peggy Devos and Romina Stefancic were second with US club rowers Katherine Stainken and Morgan Wimberley in third.

Head of the Charles Regatta executive director Fred Schoch described the racing as spectacular and the two all-star eights as historic. “The women rowed with finesse and the men with raw power and emotion,” said Schoch. “The men sprinted on the straights knowing they would lose time on the turns when their coxswain dug her hand in the water to steer. The whole experience of having them all together was historic!”

Despite the chilly, wet conditions the two days of racing was able to be completed on the 5km Charles River course, but not before a Sunday afternoon snowfall. The regatta organisers were fortunate to receive a donation of 2,000 tinfoil thermal blankets from the Boston Athletic Association. At least three reported cases of hypothermia required medical help.

Despite the inclement weather, crowds of 121,000 were recorded on the Saturday with 84,000 braving the wind and snow on Sunday.

For full results please go to: www.hocr.org

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