Ely’s Women’s Junior at Schools Regatta - News - LIVING SPORT

Ely’s Women’s Junior at Schools Regatta

The Isle of Ely Rowing Club’s women’s junior 14 coxed quad scull performed brilliantly at the National Schools Regatta in Nottingham last weekend.

They raced against 27other crews in their category, claiming a very credible 4th place in the final after qualifying strongly throughout the competition.

The crew of Libby Milne, Phoebe Bradbury, Laura Sibson and Nell Freeman, coxed by Annie Radcliffe in the time trial and later by Ellen Bridges, have been training together for six months, working towards competing at the National Schools Regatta, which is the premier national event for juniors in the UK.

Milne and Freeman, who attend Soham Village College, joined forces with Bradbury, Sibson and Bridges, who are pupils at the King’s School, Ely, after being spotted by Isle of Ely Rowing Club junior coach, Victor Bridges, as talented scullers with lots of potential.

The girls first had to complete a time trial in the morning to qualify for a place in the semi finals. They raced well and easily secured their place, coming fourth overall.

Having qualified for the semi finals, the Ely quad had to finish in the top two crews in their next race to reach the all-important final. Drawn in the first of the three semi-final races, the Ely girls were up against very stiff competition from crews including hot favourites Headington School in Oxford.

Headington performed well in the race and were assured of first place, while the Ely girls dug deep in their battle with some of the other crews to surge towards the finishing line and beat Kingston Grammar School by two seconds, claiming their place in the final.

The six finalists lined up at the start, two hours later, with their sights set on winning a medal. The Ely rowers were up against the excellent crews. It was a thrilling race with the Ely quad fighting all the way, just being pipped to the line by Kings Chester for the bronze medal, with the Henley crew coming second and Headington winning the gold.

Coach Victor Bridges said, ‘The girls did everything they could – they raced hard against a top quality opposition and fought all the way to the finish.’

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