Scullers Head of the River Race

Summary

The Scullers Head of the River Race is a rowing race held annually on the River Thames Championship Course from Mortlake to Putney, open to single scullers only. The race is held in November or early December each year on a week usually to suit the mid-morning or mid-afternoon timing of the ebb tide.

Scullers Head of the River Race
FrequencyAnnual
Location(s)Championship Course, River Thames in London, England
Years active1954-Present
Previous event7 December 2019
Next eventNovember/December 2020
Participants500 crews
Websitewww.vestarowing.co.uk/vesta-scullers-head

History edit

The Scullers Head was first raced in 1954 when it was won by John Marsden.[1] It now admits entries of over 500 scullers[2] and is the largest sculling race in the UK for a single class of racing shell. The race gains enough entries to organise the greatest number of marshalls for any singles event on the Thames and it draws considerably more overseas single scullers than the same race held in reverse usually three to four weeks before, the Wingfield Sculls, which dates to the middle of the 19th century.

In 2014 were the first admissions of categories for adaptive rowing for athletes with disabilities, in TA and LTA adaptive rowing classifications.[2]

Annual organisation edit

The race is organised by Vesta Rowing Club, Putney, London.

Results since 1990 edit

Men edit

Date Winner Club Time
1990 Rory Henderson Leander 22:51
1991 Steven Redgrave Marlow 21:32
1992 Guy Pooley Leander 20:56
1993 Peter Haining Auriol Kensington 23:13
1994 Peter Haining Auriol Kensington 19:53
1995 Niall O'Toole Commercial RC, Dublin 21:16
1996 Peter Haining Auriol Kensington 21:49
1997 Martin Kettle Queens Tower 20:31
1998 Greg Searle Molesey 21:18
1999 Giles Monnickendam Notts County 21:29
2000 Rod Chisholm Tideway Scullers
2001 Guy Pooley Leander   20:03.94
2003 cancelled due to exceptional weather conditions
2004 Mark Hunter Leander   21:22.13
2005 Tom Gale Tideway Scullers   22:05.18
2006 Mahé Drysdale Tideway Scullers   19:55.26
2007 George Whittaker Imperial College BC   20:58.76
2008 Alan Campbell Tideway Scullers   20:30.57
2009 Jamie Kirkwood Imperial College BC   20:55.38
2010 Stephen Feeney[3] London RC   21:31.20
2011 Adam Freeman-Pask Imperial College BC   21:09.02
2012 Alan Campbell Tideway Scullers   20:43.32
2013 Sigmund Verstraete Walton RC   21:06.99
2014 Jamie Copus Oxford Brookes University BC 21:03.55
2015 cancelled due to exceptional weather conditions

Women edit

Date Winner Club Time
Results missing
2009 Hester Goodsell[4] Reading University BC   22:21.92
2010 Beth Rodford[5] Gloucester RC   22:54.06
2011 Imogen Walsh London RC   22:35.9
2012 Georgina Phillips Imperial College BC   22:40.24
2013 Lou Reeve Leander Club   22:14:41[6]
2014 Brianna Stubbs Wallingford RC 22:41.31
2015 cancelled due to exceptional weather conditions

See also edit

  • Metropolitan Regatta The London Cup (singles). Held in late May/very early June at Eton-Dorney Lake.
  • Diamond Challenge Sculls rowed by race-winning singles at Henley Royal Regatta, forming the second prerequisite of the rare accomplishment of a 'Triple Crown' with those above and below. Held in July.
  • Wingfield Sculls rowed by singles along the course in reverse, the last component of the 'Triple Crown'. Held in October or early November. Where the Scullers' Head is also won there is the theoretical possibility of a 'Quadruple Crown' for a single sculler able to win all four events. As the Diamond Sculls is not open to women, a win at the Scullers Head forms the last leg of the UK's Triple Crown for an all-round champion female single sculler.
  • Rowing on the River Thames

References edit

  1. ^ Daily Telegraph Obituary John Marsden 5 March 2004
  2. ^ a b [1] Main page noting new facts and full capacity of 550 entries has been reached in 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2014.
  3. ^ "Stephen Feeney | British Rowing". Archived from the original on 23 March 2010. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
  4. ^ "Scullers' Head".
  5. ^ "Scullers' Head".
  6. ^ Scullers Head 2013 Results (pdf) Vesta Rowing Club. Retrieved 2014-17-11.

External links edit

  • Scullers Head