Bennett was part of a Leander Club crew, along with reigning World Champions Fiona Gammond and Holly Norton, that claimed gold in a well-contested women’s eight competition on Sunday.

“That was a really nice way to start the season,” said Bennett. “It was great fun racing with the girls, they are all up-and-coming rowers and really talented.”

Leander also won the men’s eight title in a new regatta record as they got the better of an experienced Oxford Brookes University crew featuring Olympic champion Scott Durant and fellow Rio 2016 rowers Peter Chambers and Mat Tarrant.

Holly Nixon and Jess Leyden, World Senior and U23 Champions respectively, teamed up with Lucy Burgess and Emily Carmichael to claim a clear-water victory in the women’s quadruple scull.

And their club colleagues at Leander recorded a one-two in the men’s competition, with gold going to the lightweight quad of Ed Fisher, Charles Waite-Roberts, Jonathan Jackson and Samuel Mottram.

The first day of competition saw a 26-year-old record fall as an Isis A crew featuring Ollie Cook took full advantage of the weekend’s tail-winds to win a cracking men’s four final in a new regatta-best time of 6:03.17.

Cook was one of three reigning World Champions to claim gold on Saturday, with Wallingford RC’s Brianna Stubbs and Ellie Piggott continuing their successful partnership by dominating the women’s double competition.

Leander Club’s Nick Middleton and Tom Barras did likewise in the men’s double, while Cambridge University Women’s BC’s A crew of Myriam Goudet, Alice White, Lucy Pike and Melissa Wilson claimed the women’s four title in impressive fashion.

Four aspiring GB para-rowers competed in an open arms-trunk single scull, with Scott Jones (Gloucester Hartpury), Sophie Brown (Sudbury RC) and Ekow Otoo (Marlow RC) winning gold in their respective classifications.

Paralympics legend Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson presented the medals and said: “The inclusive nature of these Championships is really important and great to see. I wish more sports would do it.”

This year’s Championships – sponsored by Visit Sarasota County, hosts of the 2017 World Senior Championships – were the first to include prizes for non-high performance programme clubs and universities. Tideway Scullers School, Lea RC, Kingston RC and Thames RC were among the clubs to take home shields.

More than 1,000 rowers from 100 clubs – 19 of which were composites – raced during a busy and competitive weekend.

Jim Harlow, Chairman of the Regatta, said: “It has been a hugely successful weekend at the British Rowing Senior Championships. We have seen lots of close racing over the course of the weekend, with crews really pushing each other to bring out their best. It is testament to the dedication and hard work that every rower and coach puts in; it’s great to see.

“I would like to personally thank all the outstanding volunteers, without which this event would not be possible. I’m already looking forward to next year!”

Go to to see the results in full and click on the expander boxes below for reports and reaction from the weekend, plus a roll of honour.

The post Record-breaking weekend of racing at Senior Champs 2016 appeared first on British Rowing.

A host of reigning World Champions, at both senior and U23 level, will also be representing their clubs when the two-day competition is staged at the National Water Sports Centre, Holme Pierrepont.

“I love racing at the British Championships”, Scott Durant, Olympic champion

The last time Durant raced, he was part of the Team GB men’s eight that stormed to gold in memorable style on the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas. Two months later, and at the end of a week when the Rio 2016 heroes were celebrated in Manchester and London, he will line up in an Oxford Brookes University eight looking to retain the British title they won last year.

“I’m looking forward to this weekend, I love racing at the British Championships and it should be good fun as always,” said Durant.

“It’s always good to get back into an Oxford Brookes boat and race with the students coming through. Brookes played such a huge part in my rowing development – I was there for six years between leaving school and joining the GB Rowing Team, and I owe so much of my rowing success to them.

“It should be a good competition. There are a lot of guys coming into the GB team who will be racing for the likes of Leander this weekend, so it will be tough but we are hoping to retain our title.”

Also representing Oxford Brookes are double Olympian Peter Chambers, twice World Champion Mat Tarrant, who was a men’s heavyweight spare in Rio, and Joel Cassells, a European Champion and World bronze-medallist in the lightweight men’s pair this year.

Sam Scrimgeour, Cassells’ partner in the boat for both of those races and the lightweight men’s spare at the Olympic Games, races for Imperial College BC this weekend.

The men's eight from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games

Bennett’s last competitive outing was with the GB women’s eight that won a historic silver medal in Rio. She returns to action as part of a strong Leander Club squad looking to once again secure the Victor Ludorum accolade for top performing club.

“I’m excited to kick-start the season at the British Championships,” said GB Rowing Team Start graduate Bennett, who will compete in a women’s eight field that has attracted an impressive 31 crew entries.

“It’s great to see so many women getting involved and racing. The eight is a very fast but fun boat because you can share all the moments with eight other people.

“It will be the first time I’ve raced since my Olympic final and the scenery will be a bit different but I’m really looking forward to it.

“It’s great to have the opportunity to represent my club. They’ve given me a lot of help over the years so when I was offered the chance to race for them this weekend I couldn’t turn it down.

“It will be tough after the post-Rio break I’ve had but I’m going to go out there and give it my best shot.”

Other rowers with senior GB experience include Becca Chin, Caragh McMurtry, Jamie Copus, Zak Lee-Green and Nick Middleton, who won both the double scull and quadruple scull titles at last year’s British Championships.

There will be plenty of potential Tokyo 2020 stars for rowing fans to look out for this weekend, including several who shone at this year’s combined Senior, U23 and Junior World Championships in Rotterdam.

“It’s fantastic to see such a strong and diverse line-up”, Jim Harlow, Regatta Chairman.

Ollie Cook (University of London BC) and Callum McBrierty (Leander), powered to gold alongside cox Henry Fieldman in the senior men’s coxed pair, while three of the women’s four that won in Rotterdam – Fiona Gammond, Holly Nixon and Holly Norton – will race in Leander colours this weekend.

Lightweight women’s quadruple scull World Champion Emily Craig will represent University of London BC, while Ellie Piggott and Brianna Stubbs – her team-mates in Rotterdam – will race for Wallingford RC.

All six of GB’s reigning U23 World Champions will be in action – Jess Leyden (Leander) and Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne (Reading RC) were emphatic winners of women’s double scull gold, while Hugo Coussens (Durham University BC), Ollie Varley (Newcastle University BC), Matthew Curtis and Gavin Horsburgh (both Edinburgh University BC) took the lightweight men’s quadruple scull title in fine style.

Eleven other U23 medallists and eight World Junior medallists will also take their place among the 1,004 rowers from 100 clubs – 19 of which are composites – who have signed up for this weekend’s championships.

Jim Harlow, Chairman of the Regatta added: “It’s fantastic to see such a strong and diverse line-up at this year’s Senior Championships. It is testament to the strength and depth of senior rowing across the UK. Rowing is one of those rare sports where club rowers have the chance to compete alongside GB rowers including returning Olympic champions. After so many inspiring performances on the Lagoa in Rio it is set to be a hotly contested championship.”

Races will take place in nine categories – men’s and women’s double sculls, men’s and women’s fours, men’s and women’s quadruple sculls, men’s and women’s eights, and mixed para-rowing.

Racing is scheduled to begin at 9am on both days and conclude around 4.30pm on Saturday and 4.10pm on Sunday. This year’s championships are the first-ever to include prizes for non-high performance programme clubs and universities.

For more information about the British Rowing Senior Championships, visit .

SCHEDULE FOR A FINALS (ALL SUBJECT TO CHANGE)

Saturday

15:30 – men’s double scull

15:48 – women’s double scull

16:06 – men’s four

16:24 – women’s four

Sunday

13:40 – para-rowing

15:06 – women’s eight

15:24 – men’s quadruple scull

15:42 – women’s quadruple scull

16:00 – men’s eight

The post Olympic superstars to race at Senior Championships appeared first on British Rowing.

The men found the form that had made them World Champions for the past three years as they produced a phenomenal performance to dominate their final from the first stroke to the last.

That came just minutes after the women’s eight had produced what is fast becoming a trademark charge through the field in the second half of the race to go from last to second, claiming silver in a thrilling photo-finish.

It was another moment of rowing history on the Lagoa, being the first Olympic medal won by a British women’s eight, and helped to ensure that GB finished top of the Rio 2016 rowing medal table with three golds and two silvers.

Andrew T Hodge and Pete Reed both became triple Olympic Champions with their success in the men’s eight, while Matt Langridge completed his set of Olympic medals after silver in 2008 and bronze in 2012.

“I’m proud to have been in such a crew,” said Hodge. “The eight is a wholly team event and we worked for each other.”

Reed added: “I’m just thinking about how grateful I am to our coach and to the crew. They are just the most amazing bunch of guys and that was a big, big race.”

Jurgen Grobler, the Chief Coach for Open-weight Men who has now led 12 GB crews to Olympic gold, said: “It’s just fantastic what the guys did. They matched the coxless four and it’s been a wonderful day. It’s wonderful for British Rowing, it’s wonderful for our sport.

“In the last four years we have developed winning athletes, medal athletes, podium athletes. We knew we had a good bunch of guys to win the eight as well and I feel so good for them, there is a good mix between older and younger ones.”

The men's eight from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games

It may have been a first Olympic medal for a women’s eight but it was a third silver for Frances Houghton who, like Katherine Grainger, was appearing at a record fifth Olympic Games for a British female rower.

“This fifth Olympics has been really great,” she said. “We’ve really tried to make sure we’ve had a good time. Even before the race we sat around and we were laughing and joking together.

“Sport can be so much pressure but at the same time, sport is supposed to be fun and a great experience. It’s something you do that you enjoy and you pursue because you like to be challenged.”

Jess Eddie, fifth with the eight in both 2008 and 2012, dedicated the success to the British women rowers who had been part of the programme during the past two decades.

“We’ve worked so hard to get here and it’s not just us, we did that for every single woman who has rowed in the eight for the past 20 years – you know who you are, you helped us get over this line.”

Sir David Tanner, Team GB Leader for Rowing, said: “With three outstanding golds and two superb silvers, our 26 rowing medallists have done TeamGB proud at these Olympics. 26 rowers will be returning home having achieved their dreams here in Rio. To be top of the rowing medal table for the third successive Olympics is something to be truly proud of.

“Well done to our rowers and the outstanding Coaching and Team Support staff, not only out here in Rio but those at home who backed us all the way.”

Click on the expanded boxes below for full race reports, reaction and results.

The post Eights excel as GB tops Rio medal table appeared first on British Rowing.

Alex Gregory, Mohamed Sbihi, George Nash and Constantine Louloudis laid down a strong marker in their opening Olympic men’s four heat here at the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas in Brazil.  They built on an early lead to win in 5:55.59 and move into Wednesday’s semi-finals.

“I feel like a pressure valve has been released”, said Gregory  It’s been a lot of waiting but it was good to get the job done”.

Nash added: “It was good to get that one under our belts and out of the way”.

Helen Glover and Heather Stanning experienced a much tighter affair, coming through a stiff Danish challenge to win their opening heat of the 2016 Olympic regatta in 7:05.05.
The Olympic, World and European Champions saw the danger in the final 250m and needed a powerful flourish at the end to secure the win.

Stanning said:  “The important thing today was to get into the semi-finals and we did that.  It definitely wasn’t a bad row but it wasn’t an exceptional row either”.

Glover added:  “On time and on margin that was a tough race but we have experienced having to dig deeper in other races and in training”.

The GB women’s eight paced their heat to perfection to break through a New Zealand lead in the final 500m to win and take a place in Sunday’s final.  The win was revenge for their defeat to the Kiwis at the season’s final world cup.

GB’s men followed up with a commanding performance to win their eights heat in 5:34.23 to move straight through to Sunday’s final.

“We have put in a lot of hard work over the past two months and I think it’s beginning to show”, said Pete Reed.

“They are all very, very good crews here. The final is going to be an incredible race”, added Paul Bennett.

Will Fletcher and Richard Chambers secured their semi-final slot with second place in their lightweight men’s double heat behind South Africa.

Chambers talked on behalf of the crew whilst his crew-mate Will Fletcher was called to anti-doping. “Today was good but not good enough. I know we can do better. We didn’t settle as well into our rhythm as we have been doing in training.  It was probably just the excitement of an opening heat at the Olympic Games”.

Kat Copeland and Charlotte Taylor did not get the result they wanted today as they were fifth in their heat and now race a repechage of the lightweight women’s double scull.
Taylor said: “I guess the disappointing thing is that we haven’t shown what we can do.  We need to deconstruct what we have just done and put it all back together again for tomorrow’s repechage”.

Earlier the GB men’s quadruple scull warmed GB hearts as they overcame recent bad luck to reach the Olympic final, taking second place in their repechage. As Jack Beaumont, Sam Townsend, Angus Groom and Peter Lambert crossed the line there was probably a bit of Graeme Thomas – the man who had to go home ill  – with them as they became the first GB crew to reach a final here in Brazil.

“It hasn’t been the ideal preparation but I’m very happy for the three guys behind me in the stroke seat as well as for Charles (Cousins) and Graeme (Thomas) who helped get us here”. said Lambert.

John Collins and Jonny Walton were also in much better racing fettle today as they powered into the semis of the open men’s double scull with a win in a tensely-contested repechage.

For further information about this report please contact the GB Rowing Team press officer, Caroline Searle, via comms@gbrowingteam.org.uk OR the phone numbers in the contact box below.

The post Four and eights lay down marker appeared first on British Rowing.

Scott Durant, Tom Ransley, Andrew T Hodge, Matt Gotrel, Pete Reed, Paul Bennett, Matt Langridge, Will Satch and cox Phelan Hill are named for Rio today. This crew pressed the German Olympic Champions all the way to the line before narrowly taking silver at last month’s world cup in Poland.

Hodge and Reed have twice won Olympic gold in the men’s four. Ransley, Langridge and Hill were men’s eight bronze medallists in London, while Satch won bronze in the men’s pair.

Gotrel, a former international sailor who swapped to rowing at University, Bennett and Durant will be making their Olympic debuts.  All three have been in either World gold medal winning crews or on the World podium in other boat classes.

In all three men’s eight World finals, the main opposition has come from Germany.  However, the Dutch, third at last year’s World Championships and winners at the Lucerne World Cup, will also prove strong contenders in Rio this summer.

Nathaniel Reilly O’Donnell and Mat Tarrant will provide cover for the Olympic open-weight men’s sweep squad.  The duo have been World Champions themselves in the eight since London.

Team GB also announced today that Vicki Meyer-Laker will be the reserve for the open-weight women’s squad.  That brings the total of rowers to 47 and completes the selection for the sport – click on the expander box below to see the full squad.

The squad will now be focussing on a month of hard training in European-based camps before travelling on to Rio.

Mark England, Team GB’s Chef de Mission, said: “GB has had powerful success in the men’s eight since London 2012 and we are delighted to welcome this crew into Team GB today.”

Sir David Tanner, British Rowing Performance Director and Team GB Rowing Team Leader, said:  “The GB men’s eight showed strong form at the season’s world cup finale, taking a superb silver and putting the Olympic Champions, Germany, under pressure. We are taking one of our strongest open men’s sweep squads to the Games in Rio and the men’s eight is one of our headline crews.”

The men’s eight (who may have been watching Star Wars on training camp by the looks of things) hope the force will be with them when the Olympic rowing regatta starts in 36 days time.

Matt Langridge said: “It’s great to be officially selected in the eight, I’m very confident that this group of guys have what it takes to win in Rio and, with Jurgen’s programme, we’ll be in the best possible shape come Rio – the force is strong with that one.”

Scott Durant said: “It feels great to be selected but now the real work begins. In my experience there is no such thing as luck.”

Andrew T Hodge said: “Do. Or do not.  There is no ‘try’. Rio, here we come, finally.”

Will Satch said: “Train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose.”

Phelan Hill said: “It’s a real honour to be selected to represent for Team GB at the Olympics. The circle is now complete. When I competed at London, I was but the learner now I am the master.”

Paul Bennett said: “Now witness the firepower of this fully armed and operational battle station!”

The post Men’s eight for Rio confirmed as Team GB finalise squad appeared first on British Rowing.

Every crew from every nation had to dig deep in the strong cross-winds which meant winning came ugly rather than with finesse.

Helen Glover and Heather Stanning won the women’s pair to defend successfully their European title by some margin while the new-look 2016 men’s four of Alex Gregory, Mohamed Sbihi, George Nash and Constantine Louloudis controlled the conditions better than the opposition as well as having the power to take victory by just over a length.

Sbihi said:  “I didn’t need to call for a big push at the end. We had the length at the end.  They were tough conditions. Every time we got some boat-speed the wind hit us but you have to deal with the conditions on the day”.

Gregory said:  “It was very hard to do what we normally try to in training but it was a real test of our boatmanship. I am really pleased with the start we have made and I am excited to find out what we can do from here”.

Constantine Louloudis, George Nash, Moe Sbihi and Alex Gregory

Helen Glover and Heather Stanning crowned European Champions earlier this month.

Glover said:  “There were waves coming over my back at the start but racing here has up-skilled us.  We may have cross-wind conditions in Rio so it was good to race in them”.

Stanning added:  “We may be an experienced crew but we’re not experienced in these conditions.  So we had to concentrate”.

The GB’s women’s eight added a fabulous third gold when they smashed through the Dutch leaders with about 10m to go.

“The speed with which we were able to come through at the end was the special bit.  We have a lot of speed in this boat”, said Olympian Katie Greves who is clearly excited about this crew.

“Everyone did their job and stayed calm even though we were a length down’, said Zoe Lee, the stroke of boat. “It’s a privilege to row with these women”.

Joel Cassells and Sam Scrimgeour

Alan Sinclair and Stewart Innes

Sir David Tanner,  GB Rowing Team Performance Director, said:  “It’s been a day of mixed fortunes for the team with some exceptional performances especially our four golds.

“Conditions have bordered on the extreme and have bene a tough challenge for all nations but we are an outdoor sport and have to accept that. It’s now onto Lucerne for the World Cup in late May where we will hope for calmer water”.

Alan Sinclair and Stewart Innes added silver to the GB tally of four golds, two silvers and a bronze, in the men’s pair. They beat the Dutch who should have been their main opposition only to lose out on gold to Hungary who surged through at the end.  “I’m disappointed’, said Innes afterwards. “We came here to win”.

Sinclair added:  “Those were tough conditions.  I still think we have our best rowing to come”.

Chris Bartley, Mark Aldred, Jono Clegg and Peter Chambers were beaten to gold only by the reigning World Champions Switzerland in the light men’s four.  Their silver came in a time of 6:47.73 and was a big step on from their ninth place at last year’s World Championships.

Bartley said:  “After last year we are pretty pleased with that start”.  Aldred added:  “We have worked hard and made a lot of improvements over the winter”.

Chris Bartley, Jono Clegg, Peter Chambers and Mark Aldred

The men's eight

The men’s eight, a new line-up in 2016, took bronze in the last race of the day in a race won by Germany with Russia taking silver.

“That was an exciting race.  In terms of eights racing that’s about as exciting as it can get with several crews having had the lead at various times”, said World Champion Paul Bennett afterwards.

In the opening race of the day GB’s Sam Scrimgeour and Joel Cassells were emphatic winners of lightweight men’s pair gold, in one of the sport’s International Class events.  They got out to an early lead and went on to seal victory with style.  The victory meant a European title to add to Scrimgeour’s 2015 World gold and a successful title defence for Casseslls.

GB had 13 crews in today’s finals and took four golds, two silvers and a bronze. The next big event for the GB Rowing Team will be the world cup in Lucerne from May 27-29.

For reaction to this report and interview requests please contact the GB Rowing Team press office on site:  comms@gbrowingteam.org.uk or 07831 755351 or 07765 071683.

Click on the expander boxes below for more information.

The post Four gold European haul in bouncy Brandenburg appeared first on British Rowing.

Their perfectly-paced race on Brandenburg’s breezy Beetzee made them one of six GB Rowing Team crews to make tomorrow’s finals and join the seven crews that had already qualified from yesterday’s racing.

Innes said:  “We had a good start and then the middle bit got a bit bouncy but we came through it well – job done and we’re looking forward to the final”.

John Collins and Jonny Walton came through strongly in the second half of their open men’s double semi today to take a third place and move through in a strong field.

Collins said:  “We looked at both semi-finals and thought we had the toughest one but we know we have to race the best at some point. We had quite a strong first half in yesterday’s heats but needed to be a bit calmer in these conditions and I felt we pitched it a lot better today”.

Imogen Walsh

Jamie Kirkwood

Jonny Walton and John Collins

Both GB open quads went through – the men in second place and the women in third in their repechages.  As an inexperienced crew the women did well in the worsening wind and the men were closing on Estonia, who won, in the closing stages.

Jamie Kirkwood grabbed third in a dramatically close finish to his lightweight men’s single semi and Imogen Walsh was second in her repechage to book a place tomorrow.

Meanwhile, It was a difficult day for two 2012 medallists.  Olympic champion Kat Copeland and her partner Charlotte Taylor missed out on a finals spot coming fourth in their light double semi.  Alan Campbell looked out of sorts and finished fifth in his open men’s single.

Conversely fourth place was a significant achievement for 21 year-old emerging talent Mathilda Hodgkins-Byrne in the open women’s single at her first regatta at this level in this boat.

End of the Rio Road for W4x. Copyright Intersport Images

The men's quad

The 2016 GB men’s four of Alex Gregory, George Nash, Mohamed Sbihi and Constantine Louloudis, after an eye-catching heats win,  are amongst the seven already-qualified crews.  Despite their comfortable qualification all four feel there is more to be done.

Gregory said:  “For me it feels like it’s been a long winter of training.  There has been a lot riding on trials and getting selected.  So, to finally get a run-out competitively in the heats here was exciting.  It felt great.

“But we have a few things to adjust in our race place and we are looking forward to putting them right tomorrow.  The conditions here are not easy so it’s a test of boatmanship was well as our first international races as a crew”.

Sbihi added:  “Looking ahead to the final, we are not looking at who we are racing but how we are going to improve from yesterday”.

The men’s eight were pleased with their heats win ahead of Poland but are not resting on their laurels.

Scott Durant said:  “We obviously want to win tomorrow but this is the first regatta of the season, so it’s about building on what we have done so far and working towards the goal of Rio. It’s all part of the learning curve”.

The lightweight men’s four also impressed in qualifying yesterday and Peter Chambers said: “It’s been going well for us over the last few weeks, we’ve got our act together and have been moving the four along nicely. We’ve been setting a good high standard and hopefully we can show that tomorrow”.

Helen Glover and Heather Stanning will kick off the Olympic boat class action tomorrow for GB as favourites to win the women’s pair after a blistering heat.  They race at 09.18 UK time in a finals session which has been brought forward by one hour due to predicted strengthening wind conditions later in the day.  The session starts at 07.00 with the B finals. A Finals start at 08.33 and finish at 12.33.

Follow live updates on Twitter – @GBRowingTeam.

GB ROWERS TO RACE EURO FINALS WEARING BLACK RIBBONS

In tomorrow’s European Championships finals, members of the GB Rowing Team will race wearing black ribbons on their vests in memory of the late Ron Needs who sadly died a few days ago.

Ron had been a GB coach since the 1970s, coaching many medal boats and he continued to work with the team until a couple of years ago.

He coached the current GB women’s pair coach Robin Williams to a lightweight world medal in the 1970s and coached alongside current GB Rowing Team Performance Director Sir David Tanner in his days as an international coach.

Ron also coached the first GB crew to win a world gold since the 1940s when they won lightweight eight won in Amsterdam in 1977.

Katherine Grainger said:  “Ron was my first GB Rowing coach and remained a wise counsel and friend to me for 20 years.  His passion for rowing was infectious and his knowledge and understanding of the sport immense”.

For reaction to this report and interview requests on the day please contact the GB Rowing Team press office on site:  comms@gbrowingteam.org.uk or 07831 755351 or 07765 071683.

The post Six more GB crews through to European finals appeared first on British Rowing.

Helen Glover and Heather Stanning were announced in the women’s pair in which they are the reigning Olympic, World and European Champions.

Glover said:  “It’s always fantastic to be selected to represent Great Britain, and never more so than in Olympic year. The European Championships are our first opportunity to test our early season speed against international competition.”

And one of the strongest open men’s sweep* rowing squads in the world has been deployed across the men’s eight and four, as well as a new-look men’s pair, for the event which takes place in Brandenburg, Germany from May 6-8.

Sir David Tanner, GB Rowing Team Performance Director, said: “We are clearly ambitious to do well in Rio and will race and then review the Europeans combinations announced today. We will also enter six crews for the Varese World Cup regatta in ten days’ time.”

Double Olympic men’s four champions Pete Reed and Andrew T Hodge have been selected into the men’s eight in a line-up which includes Scott Durant and 2012 men’s eight medallist Matt Langridge alongside multiple World Champions Paul Bennett, Matt Gotrel, Tom Ransley, stroke Will Satch and cox Phelan Hill. Ransley, Satch and Hill are also 2012 medallists.

Alex Gregory, 2012 gold medallist in the four, returns to that boat and races with his Trials winning partner, Mohamed Sbihi, plus George Nash and stroke Constantine Louloudis. The quartet are all reigning World Champions in the men’s eight.

Gregory said:  “Everything we do aims towards the Olympics and now finally we are starting to form the crews that will make up the Olympic team. With the European Championships as the first test, I can’t wait to get the 2016 racing season underway. It’s a privilege to race for our country and the feeling of pride and excitement never diminishes.”

Having laid down a strong marker with a top-four finish at the recent GB Trials, Alan Sinclair and Stewart Innes are named as the men’s pair.

It is the first major step conquered on the way to fulfilling my dream of competing in my fifth Olympic Games – Frances Houghton

Relative rookie Angus Groom has forced his way into the open men’s quadruple scull* in the absence of the injured Charles Cousins, to join 2013 and 2014 World medallists Sam Townsend, Graeme Thomas and Peter Lambert.

Lambert said:  “I am extremely happy with my selection for the Europeans. This regatta is an exciting start to our Olympic season. The men’s quad at the Europeans is an extremely high competition. Out of the eight crews that qualified last year for the Olympics, seven of them are European countries. We are looking forward to it.”

2012 bronze medallist Alan Campbell, whose Trials’ win showed that he is back on form, races the single scull and Jonny Walton and John Collins, contest the double scull – they qualified that boat for Rio at last year’s World Championships.

Four-times Olympic medallist Katherine Grainger is named in the open women’s double scull with Trials winner Vicky Thornley in a reprise of their 2015 partnership which finished its debut season with a place in the World final.

Like Grainger, Frances Houghton, will race a fifth Olympic Games if selected later this summer for Rio.  She has switched from sculling to sweep rowing and has won a seat in the women’s eight that came so close to winning a medal at last year’s World Championships.

Grainger said:  “The idea of ever competing at the Olympic Games was once just a dream and so it was incredible when I made the team in 2000. Now 16 years on and looking to my fifth Games I still have the same excitement I did back then, it’s the most amazing event to be part of and that doesn’t change whether it’s the first time or the fifth.”

Houghton said:  “I feel almost overwhelmed to be selected for the European Championships in the women’s eight. It is the first major step conquered on the way to fulfilling my dream of competing in my fifth Olympic Games.

“It has at times seemed like an insurmountable mountain to climb and now it is just sinking in that all the hard work and deep belief in the darkest of times of illness and injury has paid off.”

Olympians Jess Eddie, Katie Greves and Melanie Wilson as well as 2013 World pair champion Polly Swann, back after a year out with injury, will be joined in the line-up by Zoe Lee, Karen Bennett, Olivia Carnegie-Brown and cox Zoe de Toledo.

It’s a privilege to race for our country and the feeling of pride and excitement never diminishes – Alex Gregory

World silver medallists Kat Copeland and Charlotte Taylor will once more race the lightweight women’s double scull having taken the top two spots at the Trials from a strongly contested lightweight sculling group. Imogen Walsh, therefore, races the single in which she won World silver in 2015.

Richard Chambers is on his way back after a recent hand injury and will race the lightweight men’s double, if fully fit, with Will Fletcher. Just like Olympic Champion Copeland and Taylor, they won World silver last year in their debut season together.

Further post-Trials testing was needed to establish the crews for the lightweight men’s sweep boats.  2012 silver medallists Peter Chambers and Chris Bartley have made the cut and will be joined by Mark Aldred and Jono Clegg, both now experienced internationals.  Sam Scrimgeour and Joel Cassells are GB’s choice in the pair. They won World gold last year.

Jamie Kirkwood, a World finalist last year, takes up the GB slot in the lightweight men’s single once more.

British Rowing will also race six crews at the Varese World Cup from April 15-17, including the women’s quadruple scull, announced in the European squad today as Holly Nixon, Jess Leyden, Tina Stiller and Rosamund Bradbury as the campaign begins to qualify this boat for Rio.

Click the expander ‘Crew List’ box below to see the squad in full.

*Sweep = one rower, one oar / Scull = one rower, two sculls

RACING TIMETABLE – 2016 European Championships, Brandenburg, Germany

• Friday 6 May – all heats a.m.; some repechages p.m.
• Saturday 7 May – All further repechages and semi-finals.
• Sunday 8 May – All finals (09.33 – 13.33 UK Time).

GB ROWING TEAM MEDALISTS – 2015 European Championships, Poznan, Poland

Gold:

• Women’s pair – Helen Glover, Heather Stanning.
• Men’s pair – James Foad, Matt Langridge.
• Men’s four – Nathaniel Reilly-O’Donnell, Alan Sinclair, Tom Ransley, Scott Durant.
• Lightweight women’s single scull – Imogen Walsh.
• Lightweight women’s double scull – Charlotte Taylor, Kat Copeland.
• Lightweight men’s pair – Joel Cassells, Peter Chambers.

Silver:

• Men’s eight – Matt Gotrel, Stewart Innes, Pete Reed, Paul Bennett, Moe Sbihi, Alex Gregory, George Nash, Will Satch, Phelan Hill (cox).
• Lightweight men’s double scull – Richard Chambers, Will Fletcher.

Bronze:

• Women’s double scull – Vicky Thornley, Katherine Grainger.
• Men’s quadruple scull – Jack Beaumont, Sam Townsend, Graeme Thomas, Peter Lambert.

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