National Schools’ Regatta 2025 – Open Third Eights Preview

Here we go. The primary race of the season descends on Nottingham next weekend for some of the country’s top junior third eights to race. This category is packed with heavyweights of junior rowing, with seven schools entered. After a close Schools’ Head of the River earlier this season, this category has plenty of talent. It will be an exciting watch after a competitive season thus far.

Radley College Boat Club

One of the candidates to take the gold medal this year is Radley College Boat Club. After a defiant performance, coming first at the Schools’ Head of the River earlier this year, they will be looking to build on this and complete the double next weekend. They have one returner from last year’s bronze medal-winning crew. Radley have displayed in recent years that they only grow faster throughout the season. With a change of head coach this year, this Radley crew is looking to write the wrongs of past seasons and take away another gold. It will be interesting to see if this crew has gained speed.

St Edward’s School Boat Club

One of the leading contenders for the open third eights title at this year’s National Schools’ Regatta is St Edward’s School Boat Club. After a strong second-place finish at the Schools’ Head of the River earlier this season, just behind Radley, Teddies have firmly established themselves as serious medal contenders heading into the weekend. After last year’s strong Junior 16 crews, it is no secret that there is a great deal of squad depth. The crew did not race last year, indicating an improvement in the school’s skill. After recent successes, seeing if this crew can cause some upsets next weekend will be interesting.

Eton College Boat Club

After securing a third place at the Schools’ Head of the River, Eton College are looking to push higher up that podium. Eton is a school notorious for peaking during regatta season and showing their actual speed come the National Schools’ Regatta. What will be this group of athletes’ first National Schools’ Regatta away from home, it will be interesting to see if this change of location and loss of home advantage affects the results the school manages to produce. Either way, this year’s Eton crew will fight for a place on that podium.

Notable Mentions

There are several other heavyweights in this category. Hampton School Boat Club, which has seen a resurgence in recent years, may also be able to compete for those top spots. After missing out on the Schools’ Head of the River title, this crew will be fired up to go next weekend. Another crew that could be in contention for a medal position is Westminster School Boat Club, an established program that will look to overturn a poor result at the Schools’ Head of the River. Finally, we have the infamous Bedford School third eight, who could also be looking to upset the rest of the crews.

Prediction

Although this is a relatively small pack of crews, next weekend’s race will be interesting. With three crews hitting fairly similar speeds, it will be interesting to see which crew comes first and where anything can happen. My prediction, however, is Radley College Boat Club will clinch the top spot due to their fierce speed at the Schools’ Head of the River. They will be closely followed by St Edward’s School Boat Club, who have grown into the regatta season in recent years. Finally, I think the bronze spot will go to Eton College Boat Club.