Entries: 11
New to this year, The Bridge Challenge Plate is the women’s intermediate eight event. In its inaugural year, the event has drawn 11 entries for an all-domestic affair, and the quality of racing promises is poised to be the best in class. With clubs, universities, and high-performance centres all fielding stacked line-ups, this new women’s intermediate event is shaping up to be one of the most hotly-contested titles of the regatta. Yet, who will be the ones to have their name engraved first?
Thames Rowing Club ‘A’
Thames comes in as a clear front-runner, fresh from dominant wins on both days at the Metropolitan Regatta. This is a crew built from pedigree and experience: six athletes have prior Henley Royal Regatta experience, with notable wins at the Women’s Head of the River Race, Heineken, and The Wargrave Challenge Cup in 2023. The boat is stroked by two-time Henley Royal Regatta winner, Darla Matthews, and features GB Olympian Chloe Brew in the five-seat. This crew combines depth, cohesion, and the unmistakable polish of a Thames top boat. It would be a surprise not to see them in the final. Their recent Henley Women’s Regatta loss to the Leander & University of London composite will either give them the fire needed to come back stronger, or knock their confidence enough to give their opponents in pink (and purple) the upper hand.
Cambridge University
A Blue Boat entry in this event should not be a surprise given the pedigree this crew brings. The Cambridge women put on a dominant Boat Race performance this year against Oxford, bringing esteemed backgrounds and experience together, including Claire Collins, a Princeton alum from the US women’s eight from the 2024 Olympic Games, and Sophia Hahn, a Yale alum who is no stranger to the Henley Royal Regatta stretch having began her career at Henley Rowing Club. Stroke Samantha Morton Van Eybergen led the Light Blue crew this year and looks to set a fierce rhythm down the Henley track. While their boat speed is proven on the Tideway, and the crew ended up fourth at BUCS, Henley’s unique format may be a leveller. Nonetheless, their top-end talent is undeniable.
Leander Club and University of London
Off the back of a strong win at the Henley Women’s Regatta, defeating Thames in the final, this crew comes in as a favourite. Members of this crew have already taken wins at Ghent and posted impressive performances at Women’s Head of the River Race. This crew brings U23 medals and a wealth of experience, from the likes of Philippa Emery, Katherine George, Abigail Topp, Lauren Carey, and University of London’s own Georgie Robinson Ranger, who has made an incredible comeback following injury. Add in cox Erin Kennedy, a Paralympic champion; this crew could be unshakeable. If they have recovered well from their Henley Women’s Regatta campaign, they will be dangerous.
Oxford Brookes University ‘A’
Although Brookes has had a year of results they’d perhaps like to forget, they are never ones to be discounted in a Henley Royal Regatta event. Three athletes in this crew, including U23 world champion Rhianna Sumpter, were a part of the 2024 victorious Brookes Remenham Challenge Cup eight who posted an astounding victory over the USA development eight last year, and the boat is filled with previous wins at BUCS and Ghent. If anyone is going to upset the favourites, Brookes might just do it with trademark aggression and programme depth. On the right day, it could just go their way.
Molesey BC & Newcastle University
This composite could be a dark horse. With athletes from top U23 and US collegiate programmes, they have plenty of talent: Harriet Drake-Lee brings speed from a NCAA Varsity eight win with Yale for the history books, Holly Dunford and Hope Cessford bring an experienced rowing CV, and Holly Youd, U23 gold medal winner, strokes a crew that has already notched up wins and strong finishes at the Women’s Head of the River Race, Wallingford, and Heineken. Having just come together in early June, cohesion could be their most significant barrier. If they have clicked, they could go toe-to-toe with anyone in the draw.
Leander Club and Hartpury University
As is so often the case in The Ladies’ Challenge Plate, the GB U23 coaching squad have opted to boat a crew in the women’s intermediate eights division, with a view to this group potentially contesting for silverware in Poznan later this summer. Racing as Leander Club and Hartpury University, this boat is steered by Harvard undergraduate Nat Toms and features athletes including Chloe Sheppard (bronze medallist in the quad at the 2023 U19 World Rowing Championships and two-seat in the Washington Varsity eight that placed fifth at the 2025 NCAA National Championships), Amelia Gleed (former Henley Royal Regatta winner with Headington School in 2021 and a resident in the Texas second Varsity eight during the 2025 season) and Alice Baker (U23 world champion last summer and Stanford athlete).
Prediction
Although it would be great to see Thames or the Molesey composite hold their own in this event, with their strong performance in HWR, the composite of Leander & ULO is in the best position with the momentum and strength behind them to come out victorious against Brookes and other contenders.
