Bedford Regatta 2025 – Open Senior Coxed Fours Preview

The post-BUCS blues are setting in for many, and for most the regatta season has only just begun. Many crews from both of these groups chose Bedford Regatta as their next step, with the two-lane racing style being a great beginning to any Henley Royal Regatta campaign. The coxed fours are a tough battle, with the heavier boat making the one-on-one format much more challenging. The demand for mental strength, technical ability and power output is second-to-none. Let’s see how the open senior coxed fours match up.

Bedford School

With two crews entered, Bedford School have the home water advantage. After recently retiring from training camp in Sarnen, they will have made the most of the opportunity to get in some top-level rowing on world-class waters. Their season has been strong, with a multitude of wins at Bedford Head, including the Junior 18 coxed four. Coming off of some victories in last year’s event, they no doubt will be looking to keep the gold at home.

Abingdon School

With two crews also entered, Abingdon School are in this race to prove their strength. Training on a quiet stretch of river, Abingdon have the means to train well and get the work they need to be prepared. Their recent camp at Temple Sur Lot has proven beneficial, collecting both gold and silver medals at the Junior Inter Regional Regatta in Nottingham and the BASHER at Dorney. It will be a tough fight, but there is no doubt they are in it to win it.

Radley College

Radley College have just one crew entered, but with an untouched stretch of river and good waters, their ability to produce winning results is high. Recently, they took to Wallingford Regatta, where they saw a win with their first eight in the Mike Diserens Memorial Trophy. If this is any basis to go on, success is likely to follow them this weekend.

University of East Anglia

Coming off of BUCS Regatta, UEA have two crews entered and hope to use their racing experience to win this event. Their sixth-place in the C-final of the intermediate coxed fours at BUCS provided them with valuable lessons and experience alongside some high-level university crews. They also saw a fifth place in the open intermediate eights C-final, no doubt helping to give the racing experience they need, where they came up against crews such as Oxford, Nottingham, Newcastle, St Andrews and York, cementing their place against top-class programmes.

St John’s College

An Oxford College crew, St John’s are known as one of the more competitive collegiate programmes. With good funding and good results backing them, they are no strangers to one-on-one racing, with their training dedicated to the high end of speed work. With this regatta likely being preparation for Summer Eights, we can expect this crew to go to Bedford with a fixed purpose and to put their high-speed sprint work to good use.

Cambridge 99

Perhaps the most senior crew of all, Cambridge 99 will be boating with experience and skill on their side. Having taken part in the Winter League in Cambridge, a series of Head Races, they took home plenty of wins, including in the open club eights and open club coxed fours. With a history of holding the Cambridge Spring Regatta, a 1000m side-by-side event, they will surely bring in experience from their years of rowing and from history in this style of racing.

Predictions

This is a tough one to call. I expect Bedford to take the win here, with St John’s taking second. The knockout style doesn’t leave room for clear rankings, but Cambridge 99 and the top Abingdon crew will definitely be among the fastest crews of the day.