After last year’s cancellation, Scullers Head is back on Sunday, 28th September to launch the 2025/26 season. Nearly 600 scullers will tackle the full 6.8km championship course from Mortlake to Putney, a test not only of physical endurance but also mental resilience. 32 senior women, including 12 lightweights and six U23 athletes, are ready to compete and set the standard for this season at one of the most demanding races in the calendar.
Senior Women
Ursie Fleming (Nottingham Rowing Club)
The senior women’s category features a strong group of athletes with experience both on and off the Thames. Nottingham Rowing Club’s Ursie Fleming appears as an early favourite after finishing 6th in the single at this year’s British Rowing Championships and winning the Chairman’s Trophy for quadruple sculls at Henley Women’s Regatta as part of GB’s Performance Development Academy. She will be looking to use her sculling experience to navigate the challenging Tideway course over the weekend.
Isabelle Maxwell (Vesta Rowing Club)
Isabelle Maxwell brings valuable Tideway knowledge and experience to Scullers Head, having trained consistently on the course with Vesta Rowing Club. She also brings with her a strong set of results from last season, including a gold medal at Poplar Regatta in the women’s single sculls, a win in the B-final at Metropolitan Regatta, and an appearance in the semifinals of the Bernard and Pauline Churcher Cup for aspirational singles at Henley Women’s Regatta. She was later selected to represent Scotland in the Home International Rowing Regatta and placed fourth in the single sculls. Maxwell’s wealth of sculling experience and course knowledge will undoubtedly support her on Sunday, but will it be enough against some fierce competition?
Emily O’Connor (Twickenham Rowing Club)
Emily O’Connor has also proved herself at both the university and club levels. In 2024, she won the championship lightweight double at BUCS Regatta and Metropolitan Regatta. She also won bronze at the 2024 European Universities Rowing Championships in Zagreb, representing the University of Birmingham, and gained experience in international student racing. This year she reached the Saturday at Henley Women’s Regatta in the Chairman’s Trophy for aspirational quads with Twickenham Rowing Club. This will be Emily’s first time racing Scullers Head, so she will need to bring her best to the Tideway this weekend.
Francesca Lidlow (Thames Rowing Club)
Francesca Lidlow won the Novice Scullers Head in 2023 with a time of 24:14.48 and will have been refining her sculling skills at Thames over the past two seasons. This summer, she was selected to represent England, taking silver in the women’s coxless four at the Home International Regatta. Francesca also brings crucial Tideway experience and will use this to prove herself at this year’s Scullers Head.
Lightweight Women
Hazel Wake (City of Oxford Rowing Club)
Hazel Wake came second at Scullers Head in 2023 and will look to improve that result this year. She returns after a standout season, including winning gold at the 2025 British Club Championships in the lightweight single alongside back-to-back wins at BUCS Regatta for the University of Oxford. Hazel will be looking to build on her success of last year and come into this season with confidence and a win on Sunday.
Naomi Holland (Upper Thames Rowing Club)
Upper Thames’ Naomi Holland has also achieved strong results in recent seasons, reaching the semifinal of the aspirational doubles event at Henley Women’s Regatta this year and placing fourth in the championship lightweight single at BUCS regatta. Her achievements include a gold at the British Senior Championships and reaching the quarterfinal in the aspirational single at Henley Women’s Regatta in 2024.
U23 Women
Zara Povey (Reading University)
Zara Povey came third in the U23 category at Scullers Head in 2023 and will aim to keep a top-three finish this year. Her results from last season suggest that this is likely, as she was the fastest U23 at the GB November trials in 2024 and came 6th in the February trials. She has succeeded in a single at the Metropolitan Regatta by coming third and winning the U23 category on the Sunday. She also won Henley Women’s Regatta in the championship quad, proving her sculling skill. However, will her success during regatta season translate into the longer and more mentally challenging head races this winter?
Megan Knight (Reading University)
Megan Knight will be pushing teammate Zara Povey the whole way down the course. Knight shared the same success in the championship quad at Henley Women’s Regatta and gained experience at the U23 World Rowing Championships in Shanghai, where she finished 13th overall in the women’s double. Having trained and raced together, it will be a tight competition between these two athletes.
Predictions
The senior women’s category is strong, but Zara Povey and Megan Kight stand out as the favourites, although Isabelle Maxwell and Francesca Lidlow’s Tideway experience may give them the edge when navigating the stream. In the lightweight category, Hazel Wake will be tough to beat. However, with the unpredictability of the Tideway, it is certainly anyone’s race, so expect some close and exciting racing on Sunday.
