Rowing / Henley Royal Regatta: Imperial's measured step

THE powerful wind, blowing up the course, pushed eight race-winners to new records here yesterday.

In the Ladies' Plate, Imperial College London and Nereus, of the Netherlands, set new records all the way down the course and reached the line together, eight seconds inside the old time. A dead heat was given and they were told to race again two hours later. Imperial got away and built their lead steadily over the course to win by a length. The Imperial second eight had won the first race of the day to take the Temple Cup.

The Grand Challenge Cup went to the University of London crew which had to beat the national lightweight eights from Great Britain and Germany on successive days. London, heavyweights and with three junior world champions in the stern, had the advantage of racing on the Berkshire side of the river which won 10 of the 15 races in the day. Michael Bucheit, three times world champion, was in the No 7 seat of the German eight.

Pangbourne School took the Princess Elizabeth from Westminster in a wonderful race. Both crews were stroked by junior world champions and they were level at the quarter-mile post, but Pangbourne held their rate at 40 strokes to the minute to the Barrier and stole a half-length lead which was enough to secure the race, but only after another mile of savagely contested rowing.

For the second time in two days Rorie Henderson had to pull through in the last few strokes to take the Diamond Sculls against his house guest, Paul Reedy, the Australian who has been staying with Henderson since the Lucerne regatta three weeks ago.

Reedy struck the booms at the side of the course just above the island and although he kept rowing he had to work hard to catch Henderson who took a length lead by the Barrier. By Fawley, Reedy had drawn level and he was a length ahead by the mile post. Henderson held a lower rate of strokes to the minute and looked unlikely to get even but with 150 metres to go, although Reedy raised his rate to 38, Henderson pushed through to win by three lengths.

Nottinghamshire County won the Stewards Cup with their lightweight world champion coxless four and then lost the Queen Mother Cup for quadruple sculls by a third of a length against the Swedish crew which won the Lucerne regatta. Meanwhile their club-mates took the Wyfold Cup, the secondary coxless fours event.

Nick Clarry, the Cambridge blue, who has had little to celebrate since becoming junior world champion in 1990, took a senior event, the Goblets for coxless pairs, stroking the boat on bow side in the morning and then switching to stroke side to lead Goldie Boat Club to victory in the Britannia Cup.

WEEKEND RESULTS FROM HENLEY

GRAND CHALLENGE CUP

(Holders: Leander and Star)

Second Round

University of London bt London and Nottinghamshire County 2/3 l, 6min 20sec; Wannsee (Ger) bt Penn Athletic (US) 1l, 6.19.

Final

University of London bt Wannsee 1 3/4 l, 6.04.

PRINCE PHILIP CHALLENGE CUP

(Holders: Leander and Star)

Second Round

Leander bt Molesey and Reading University, not rowed out, 7.01; Tideway Scullers' School bt Laga and Skadi (Neth) 2/3 l, 7.02.

Final

Leander bt Tideway Scullers' School 3l, 6.49.

STEWARDS' CHALLENGE CUP

First Round

Nottinghamshire County bt Leander 1 3/4 l, 6.50; Malmo and Brudpiga (Swe) bt University of London, easily, 6.41.

Final

Nottinghamshire bt Malmo and Brudpiga 1l, 6.36.

LADIES' CHALLENGE PLATE

(Holders: Leander and Moseley)

Second Round

Nereus (Neth) bt Hamburg (Ger) 3/4 l, 6.21; Imperial College, London bt Victorian Institute of Sport (Aus) 1 1/2 l, 6.17.

Final

Imperial College and Nereus dead heat, 6.03. Re- row: Imperial College 1l, 6.06.

THAMES CHALLENGE CUP

(Holders: University of Pennsylvania A)

Fourth Round

Nereus (Neth) bt University of London 1/2 l, 6.37; Goldie bt London A 1 1/4 l, 6.28; Upper Thames bt Cornell University (US) 2/3 l, 6.32; Lea bt Calgary (Can) 1l, 6.33.

Fifth Round

Goldie bt Nereus (Neth) 2 1/4 l, 6.25; Lea bt Upper Thames 2/3 , 6.21.

Final

Lea bt Goldie 2/3 l, 6.09.

QUEEN MOTHER CHALLENGE CUP

(Holders: Leander and Tideway Scullers' School)

Second Round

Nottinghamshire County B bt Upper Thames and Tideway Scullers' School 2l, 7.00; Nautilus bt Peterborough City and Newark easily, 6.57; Stromstads (Swe) bt Tideway Scullers' School 5l, 6.47; Nottinghamshire County A bt Institute of Aviation (CIS) 1 1/2 l, 6.50.

Third round

Stromstads (Swe) bt Nottinghamshire A 1/2 l, 6.28; Nottinghamshire B bt Nautilus 1 2/3 l, 6.39.

Final

Stromstads bt Nottinghamshire B 1/3 l, 6.25.

DIAMOND CHALLENGE SCULLS

(Holder: W van Belleghem, Bel)

Fourth Round

P Reedy (Melbourne University, Aus) bt P Andersen (Queensland, Aus) nro, 8.24; R Henderson (Leander) bt F Reininger (Fairmount, US) 1/3 l, 7.54.

Final

Henderson bt Reedy 3l, 7.44.

BRITANNIA CHALLENGE CUP

(Holders: Nottinghamshire CRA)

Fourth Round

London bt Nottingham and Union 1 1/4 l, 7.09; Goldie bt New York Athletic (US) 1 1/3 l, 6.54.

Final

Goldie bt London 3 1/4 l, 6.50.

DOUBLE SCULLS

(Holders: B Eltang, Den, and H Bang, Nor)

Third Round

D Dickison and T Hallett (Mic Mac and Fredricton, Can) bt D Boddeke and J van Bekkum (Laga and Triton, Neth) 1l, 7.19; D Kruyswyk and P Wiltenburg (Gyas and Skadi, Neth) bt A Graham and M Burbanks (Molesey) 1l, 7.26.

Final

Dickison and Hallett bt Kruyswyk and Wiltenburg 1 1/4 l, 6.57.

VISITORS' CHALLENGE CUP

(Holders: Goldie A)

Third Round

University of British Columbia (Can) bt Oxford Polytechnic 4l, 7.11; Durham University bt Imperial College, London easily, 7.11.

Final

Durham bt British Columbia 1l, 6.42.

SILVER GOBLETS AND NICKALLS'

CHALLENGE CUP

(Holders: S Redgrave and M Pinsent,

Leander)

Third Round

D Gillard and N Clarry (Goldie) bt M Williams and M Helm (Upper Thames) nro, 7.48; P Ashley-Carter and A Murray (Leander) bt J Michalitsianos and R Metcalf (Lea) 2 1/4 l, 7.46.

Final

Gillard and Clarry bt Ashley-Murray and Murray 3l, 7.30.

TEMPLE CHALLENGE CUP

Fourth Round

Imperial College London bt Tufts University (US) 4l, 6.48; Trinity College Dublin (Irl) bt Orange Coast College (US) 3/4 l, 6.31.

Final

Imperial College bt Trinity College canvas, 6.16.

WYFOLD CHALLENGE CUP

(Holders: Nautilus)

Fourth Round

Nottinghamshire County A bt Nottinghamshire County B 2l, 6.56; University of London bt Calgary (Can) 2 3/4 l, 7.08.

Final

Nottinghamshire County A bt University of London 3 2/3 l, 6.38.

FAWLEY CHALLENGE CUP

First Round

Molndals and Stromstads (Swe) bt King's School, Chester and Royal Chester 1 2/3 l, 7.05; Windsor Boys School bt Reading Blue Coat School and Marlow 2 1/2 l, 7.22; Walton and Trent bt City of Cambridge 3l, 7.14; Quintin and Wallingford bt Bedford School and Abingdon School 11 2 l, 7.18.

Second Round

Walton and Trent bt Quintin and Wallingford 1/2 l, 6.53; Molndals and Stromstads (Swe) bt Windsor Boys School 3 1/2 l, 6.56.

Final

Molndals and Stromstads bt Walton and Trent 3/4 l, 6.40.

PRINCESS ELIZABETH CHALLENGE CUP

(Holders: Eton College)

Fourth Round

Westminster School bt Shiplake College 1l, 6.39; Pangbourne bt King's School, Chester 1/3 l, 6.38.

Final

Pangbourne bt Westminster 1/3 l, 6.22.