A festival of rowing and the world’s largest three-day regatta, the Head of the Charles provides racing for a variety of different groups, from juniors to the eldest of masters categories. No event does a better job of demonstrating that than the alumni events. For some, this event provides a unique opportunity to reunite with past crewmates, while at the front of the field, some of the world’s best athletes will put back their university all-in-one to battle on one of the sport’s iconic courses.
Stanford Women’s Crew Alumni
With all lineups not yet released, some mystery remains as to the relative strengths of these crews. However, if it is similar to twelve months, the Stanford crew will be one to watch. Having won this event last year with two Paris Olympians on board, this year may have up to five former Cardinals who raced at Shanghai’s World Rowing Championships. However much current international talent the crew contains, there is no shortage of talented graduates of Derek Byrne‘s programme, and this crew will be one to watch on Saturday.
Longhorn Legends
Continuing the rivalry from their college days, the University of Texas will be represented by a star-studded group of Longhorn Legends. This decorated crew is overflowing with talent, boasting a combined 14 All-American selections among them, having been key pieces in much of Texas’ success over the last decade. Leading the charge is Kaitlin Knifton, an Austin native who has just returned from winning gold at the World Rowing Championships, stroking both that boat and this weekend in Boston, with five more athletes who have raced at a senior World Rowing Championships. Containing such talent, the Longhorn Legends will have one goal on Saturday: to claim victory in this event for the first time in programme history.
University of Washington Alumni
With two wins in the last three seasons, the University of Washington has recently been the class of the field. However, their fifth-place finish in 2024 was a disappointing finish for the Huskies. This programme has a strong and international alumnae presence currently active on the world stage, and I would not be surprised to see many of those athletes donning the purple and gold on the Charles. At this summer’s World Rowing Championships, nine graduates of this programme were racing, and while they may not all be racing on Saturday, this remains indicative of the strength of their former Huskies. For added incentive, Head Coach Yaz Farooq will likely line up against them, as the former Badger typically coxes the Wisconsin alumnae eight in this event. Whomever takes the start, they will want to return the Huskies to the front of the pack this year.
Friends of Brown Women’s Crew
The most consistent programme in the history of this event, the Friends of Brown Women’s Crew, has featured in the top seven of every running of this event. However, it has been 14 years since they claimed the top honours. This programme, steeped in its tradition, opened its season with a celebration of John and Pheobe Murphy, who recently retired after 40 years at the helm in Providence. Over that time, they developed a distinctive style for their Brown crews, which allowed them to win an unmatched seven NCAA titles. In this event, the consistent strength of the programme has allowed them to have a steady stream of alumnae to fly the flag, and I would expect this year to be no different.
Old Collegians Boat Club
With their fourth place twelve months ago, the Old Collegians of University College Dublin had the best-ever performance of any European crew in this event. Representing a less decorated rowing institution, the Old Collegians maintain their alumni rowing presence throughout the season, allowing for more cohesive crews on the most significant occasions. Add to the mix a sprinkling of elite talent, and the Irish have been the top international finishers in each of the last two editions with back-to-back top tens. This year, they return five of last year’s crew, but there is a notable absence as Tokyo Olympian Aileen Crowley is not slated to make the trip to Boston. Having stroked the crew in the last few years, this will be a big miss for the crew and will likely impact their overall result on Saturday.
Crabtree Boat Club
With bow number nine, the Crabtree Boat Club crew is of similar quality to last year and is certainly not more notable than the Oxford Alumnae crew, who will start sixth. Instead, it is the nominal ‘B’ crew who drew all the attention when entries were unveiled. With a crew list visible for months, bow number 43 has the experience of eleven Olympic campaigns. Headlined by gold medallists Imogen Grant and Grace Prendergast, this team of five nationalities boasts twenty world championship medals, with many of the crew still active at the highest levels of the sport. Adding up to a phenomenal entry, their only detriment comes in their deep start in the draw, challenging the Massachusetts native Emily Erdos to steer a clean race through a tight field if they want to challenge for the medals.
Predictions
With some crew lists yet to be revealed and the relative training levels of the crews differing widely, the alumnae events are challenging to predict. However, with their depth of talent in recent international teams, I will pick the Longhorn Legends for top honours on Saturday.
