Miss Huckle (Head Rowing Coach)
On Friday 27th May, rowers from BGS Boat Club headed to 2012 Olympic rowing venue Dorney Lake for the first day of National Schools' Regatta 2022. Our Year 9 rowers arrived at the lake full of excitement for their first National Schools', the day did not disappoint! Both our A and B octos competed over 1000m in a time trial. The ‘A’ octo finished in 14th place, narrowly missing out on progression to the A/B Finals. The ‘B’ octo finished in 10th place following their time trial and progressed to the B final. They put in a fantastic performance to finish 3rd in the B final, giving them an overall ranking of 9th place in their respective category. A huge well done to all our year 9 rowers who competed at their first National Schools' with some pleasing results that indicate a bright future ahead for the Boat Club. Also competing on Friday were our Year 10 quad, with an incredibly tough draw of 68 crews with only 12 qualifying out of the time trial, the quad put in a solid performance to finish mid-table in a very competitive field.
The following day, BGS Boat Club returned to Dorney Lake for day two of the National Schools' Regatta with our senior crews. First up were our Year 10 1st and 2nd eights. Putting in performances at the top of their game, both eights qualified through to the A/B finals. In a tough field, our 2nd eight gained invaluable racing experience in a sweep oar event, placing 7th in their final. The first eight qualified out of the time trial, and raced in a highly competitive semi-final to qualify for the B final. With an outstanding row in the B final, the crew finished in 4th place, ranking them 10th overall in their category. Following the success of our Year 10 eights, our Year 11 eight were next to take to the water, again, they produced a fantastic time trial to qualify for the A/B finals. They concluded a tough and competitive day of racing qualifying for the B final. In one of the best races of the day, they stormed through the field to take 3rd place in their final, ranking 9th nationally. Our final crew to take to the water in our 2022 National Schools' Campaign were the Senior IV. They again put in a competitive performance to qualify through to the A/B finals, and concluded racing for BGS with a 5th place finish in the B final, ranking 11th overall.
Overall, it was a fantastic National Schools' for Team BGS, and the whole coaching team are incredibly proud of every rower who represented BGS at the event. We would also like to take the opportunity to thank everybody who made the trip to Dorney Lake to support our rowers. The BGS roar could certainly be heard from the bank, and the support truly added to an incredible racing experience for all involved. Wih a significant improvement in results over the past few years, the weekend certainly indicated an exciting future ahead for rowers at BGS!
