Durham rower Jess Eddie picked up her second gold medal of the British Rowing Championships on Sunday – but not in the way she was expecting.
Gusts of up to 40mph at Holme Pierrepont meant the championships had to be cut short, with medals being awarded based on the morning’s time trials.
And, despite their inexperience in sculling, it was the composite crew of Eddie, Zoe Lee and Olympic and World women’s pair champions Helen Glover and Heather Stanning which had set the fastest pace in the women’s quad.
It came less than 24 hours after the GB Rowing Team international quartet had dominated the women’s four final, leading from start to finish ahead of a strong Leander A team.
“It was a really good race because we executed exactly what we wanted to do,” said Stanning. “Total respect to the teams around us, we train with those girls every day so we knew what they were capable of and what we were capable of.
“It was mainly about minimising mistakes, especially at the start where it was quite rough. There were a few key things we were working on and we knew if we did them right we’d be in a strong position.
Also in Saturday’s fours final were the Durham University crew of Charlotte Drury, Rebecca Dell, Amy Ellerker and Hanna Gailis Inntjore, who took the under-23 lightweight title – and the scalp of arch-rivals Newcastle.
Second-year student Drury said: “This is the last summer regatta for some clubs but it’s our first of the season as students, which is useful as it gives us the chance to get a couple of 2k races under our belts before we start thinking about the Women’s Head of the River over 7k. “It’s a good chance to see where we are at compared to other unis, especially Newcastle!”
Drury was also delighted to line up against the likes of Eddie, saying: “It’s a great experience for us to see top-class rowers and compete against them,” said second-year student Drury.
“You don’t usually get that opportunity, especially if you’re not a trialist. The internationals are all really approachable and friendly as well, so if you want to chat to them and get advice you can.”
Full results and race videos are available at www.britchamps.org