Marlow Regatta returns this weekend, which may be one final chance for crews to cement their combinations before Henley Royal Regatta in two weeks’ time. Dorney Lake will be busy with boats of all shapes and sizes. The open championship single sculls has an impressive 37 crews entered, with many of the top scullers shaping up for a Diamond Challenge Sculls campaign at Henley Royal Regatta. Lots of the field this weekend have raced each other previously this year, so rivalries between scullers will be hotting up.
Minerva Bath BC: Josh Knight
Hailing from the highly successful Bath Performance Development Academy, Josh Knight has firmly established himself as one of the top scullers on the UK racing circuit. The winter season first saw Knight jump onto the scene, culminating in a strong seventh place overall in the doubles at the GBRT Final April trials. His speed in the single was on show at the two previous regattas at Dorney Lake, where he won at both Wallingford and the Metropolitan Regatta by fairly large margins. Given these results, he should be confident that he can triumph over most UK-based scullers, but with the introduction of more top-class scullers at this event, it looks like he will be pushed hard for the win.
Leander Club: Bryn Ellery
One of many strong scullers training at the pink palace, Bryn Ellery is a seasoned veteran of the UK sculling scene. Hailing from arguably the best sculling institution in the country, Windsor Boys School, his history in the sport is littered with success. A Fawley Challenge Cup winner in 2017 and 2018, he has continued to row at the highest level in his senior rowing. He has not raced much in the first part of the regatta season, but through the winter, Ellery showed his speed in the GB trials system, finishing eighth overall (incidentally just behind Josh Knight) in the doubles at April trials. He will be one to watch this weekend, but the lack of race preparation in the single may see him lose out to more fine-tuned rowers.
Leander Club: Calvin Tarczy
Throughout this regatta season so far, Calvin Tarczy has shown that he means business in the single scull. Throughout his junior and senior career, which is littered with Henley Royal Regatta wins, he has primarily been a sweep rower, so this year, transitioning to sculling was always going to be hard. However, this season Tarczy has posted some very impressive results, including second and third place finishes at Wallingford and the Metropolitan Regatta, respectively. Winning the ‘best of the rest’ race behind Josh Knight is no mean feat, but Tarczy will be looking to go one better this weekend and go home with a win.
Clydesdale Amateur Rowing Club: Ben Parsonage
Over recent years, Ben Parsonage has been one of the top lightweight rowers in the UK, collecting silverware at numerous regattas around the country. In the past two seasons, he has represented Scotland at multiple international races, proving he is one to watch this weekend at Marlow. Parsonage won the lightweight singles at the Metropolitan Regatta, finishing fourth out of all athletes, an incredible feat of rowing. You would bet he has his sights on Henley Royal Regatta, having qualified last year for The Diamond Challenge Sculls. It will be an enthralling battle to see if he has gained any speed to get a medal this weekend.
Other Scullers
Max Raymond-Barker from Lea RC and Sylvain Boyer from Kingston RC both posted good A-final results at the Metropolitan Regatta three weeks ago. Given that this weekend is a bigger and possibly stronger entry, another A-final for them may be a good result. Winner of the lightweight single sculls at BUCS Regatta, Peruvian sculler Lucas Salmon Hernandez from Nottingham University, is in attendance this weekend. He is a strong sculler, and it will be interesting to see how many openweight scullers he beats. Finally, there are a couple of Australian entries from Mercantile RC and Pine Rivers RC, respectively. With their unknown speed, they could shake up the field with some strong performances.
Prediction
Although he may be pushed harder than other races he has won, I cannot see anyone but Josh Knight triumphing again. His dominance this season in the single will be too strong for the other scullers. For second and third, I can see a battle ensuing between the two Leander Club athletes, with Tarczy taking second and Ellery third. If Parsonage has a great race, he could be a dark horse for a top-three spot, however.
