TWO crews from Northwich Rowing Club attempt to emulate the success of their predecessors at Henley Women’s Regatta this weekend.

Ellie Heathcock and Lydia Heath will compete in a junior double scull, a boat class in which a crew wearing green and gold set a course record back in 2003.

It still stands today too.

A junior quad scull, with Rachel Cooney, Imogen Wolstencroft, Charlotte Almond and Ellie Cushen on board, is also due to take part this weekend.

Both crews will contest a time trial along the 1,500m course on Saturday morning.

Should they make the cut, by finishing inside the top 16, then side-by-side racing will follow later.

On Sunday, the last eight in each boat class resumes a battle for overall honours.


 

Isabella Lindholdt and Caroline Barrett reached the finish in 5:03 during a first-round success against Avon County 15 years ago.

They eliminated St Neots in the semi-final before comfortably seeing off the challenge of Oundle School to take the title.

More recently Lucy Gillbanks and Beth Willford-Dutton, who will both be in action this weekend representing their respective universities, reached the final in 2016.

However they were pipped to first prize by a Warrington Rowing Club double that included Great Britain international Lucy Glover.

This year’s quad can travel south encouraged by winning a silver medal, with Heathcock joining Cooney, Almond and Cushen, in the A final at the Junior Sculling Regatta last month.

Wolstencroft was fourth at the same event in a single.

Northwich were also fifth in the Championship girls’ quad B final – and 11th overall – at the National Schools’ Regatta.

Henley Women’s Regatta

When is it?

Friday, June 22 through to Sunday, June 24

Where?

Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire

Who?

Northwich Rowing Club have entered two boats in the 2018 edition.

Ellie Heathcock and Lydia Heath will contest the Rayner Cup for junior double sculls while Rachel Cooney, Imogen Wolstencroft, Charlotte Almond and Ellie Cushen are among the contenders for the Bea Langridge Trophy for junior quads.

Beth Willford-Dutton, now of Oxford Brookes University, is taking part in the aspirational single scull while Lucy Gillbanks will make up one half of a Nottingham University crew – with Nina Giambrone the other – in a Championship lightweight double.

What happens?

In both boat classes where Northwich are represented a time-trial – a race against the clock rather than rival crews – on Saturday morning will cut down the field to 16 qualifiers for the main event.

They will progress to a knockout stage, with side-by-side racing upstream over a 1,500m course, later the same day.

Those categories then reach a conclusion, from the quarter-finals onwards, on Sunday.

How can I follow what’s happening?

A link to a live video feed is available on the official Henley Women’s Regatta website. Click here

Results will also be updated regularly on the same page, and on Twitter  @HenleywRegatta