In a record year for entries at Henley Royal Regatta, the 2026 Draw filled in the blanks on pathways to all of the 30 Trophies available
Nearly 50% of the crews entered have already exited via the Qualifying Races, but next week’s racing now feels closer than ever with a Draw that gives us intrigue, excitement and intensity from the very first stroke.
New Trophies Dazzle
The Draw for the three new women’s Trophies gave us a series of sensational showdowns in an emphatic underlining of the quality of the debut starting grid. In The Princess of Wales Challenge Cup for Intermediate quads, home favourites from Reading University will face Molesey Boat Club in their first round, whilst A.A.S.R Skoll of the Netherlands will tussle with countrywomen from K.S.R.V Njord & D.S.R.V Laga in their opening bow. The Danesfield Challenge Cup for club quads pitted London ‘A’ against London ‘B’ in round one, whilst Reading University will face a stern test in their opening heat of The Queen Victoria Challenge Cup. Their opposition from Delftsche Studenten Roeivereeniging Proteus-Eretes, Netherlands, contains an athlete who raced at the 2025 Varese World Rowing Cup in the double.
The Fate of the Eight
Across ten Trophies for eights at Henley Royal Regatta, the narratives were fascinating.
With straight finals between Great Britain and Italy in The Grand and Remenham Challenge Cups, attention instead moves to the Intermediate events. In The Ladies Challenge Plate, the four selected crews included the University of Washington, who have entered over half of the Varsity eight that won the 2026 IRA National Championship. They will face Thames Rowing Club, whilst holders Leander will face the winners of London Rowing Club and a strong German development outfit from Marbacher Ruderverein von 1920 e.V. and Olympischer Ruderclub Rostock von 1956 e.V, Germany. Meanwhile, in its second year of staging, The Bridge Challenge Plate pits holders Thames Rowing Club against Dartmouth College of the USA, whilst Henley Women’s Regatta winners, Molesey Boat Club & the University of London, will face first-time Henley Royal Regatta competitors, the University of Miami.
The Thames Challenge Cup for open Club eights contained an impressive four eights from the holders at London Rowing Club. Whilst their ‘A’ and ‘B’ crews were selected, their ‘C’ and ‘D’ crews face tough opening day contests against K.R.Z.V De Maas of the Netherlands and Potomac Boat Club, USA, respectively. Not to be outdone by their Putney-based neighbours, Thames Rowing Club deposited four eights into The Wargrave Challenge Cup and have a fair chance at getting the entire quartet through to Day Two of the Trophy for women’s Club eights after their ‘A’ boat was selected and the remaining three were drawn apart.
The Student eights are always heavily oversubscribed and relentlessly competitive, and the Draw for The Temple Challenge Cup gave us some mouthwatering Day One fixtures. Schoolboys Radley College will stare down the might of the University of Washington, whilst A.S.R. Nereus, who have exited the competition at the semi-final stage two years in a row, could face their own ‘B’ boat on Day Two if both can dispatch with MIT and Sydney University, respectively. Oxford Brookes’ 'B’ going up against the Bulldogs from Yale University is arguably the pick of the bunch.
In The Island Challenge Cup, the prospect of seeing Yale’s ‘B’ crew compete against Newcastle University ‘A’ in the first round is tantalising - the two were separated by only a couple of seconds at the Henley Women’s Regatta time-trial.
Radley College have not won The Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup since the turn of the century, but they arrive into the 2026 edition with the National Schools’ Regatta title at their back. If all plays out as the Stewards expect it to, their Saturday showdown with St Paul’s School could be fascinating to watch. Bedford School will face Eton College on Day One; the two institutions have 19 Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cups between them. US national champions from RowAmerica Rye may get their chance at revenge in The Prince Philip Challenge Trophy on the Saturday of this year’s competition; they were beaten in 2024’s final by Headington School, but may face the young women from Oxford a day earlier if both can navigate a tricky Draw.
Scores on the Fours
Whilst The Stewards’ Challenge Cup was straightforward - with the British senior men’s four getting a bye to the Final ahead of two development crews - The Town Challenge Cup brought with it four selected crews, three of whom hailed from overseas. Of particular excitement will be the potential match-up between the senior German coxless four from Deutscher Ruder-Club von 1884 e.V. Hannover and Bonner Ruder-Gesellschaft e.V., Germany and a talented British U23 outfit from Nautilus.
Coxless fours are always some of the most exciting races at Henley Royal Regatta and Thames Rowing Club ‘A’ in The Wyfold Challenge Cup are arriving into this year’s Regatta in fine form. To secure their first victory in this event since 2022, they will likely have to overcome the current champions from London Rowing Club, as both club’s ‘A’ crews are slated to meet in the quarterfinals. This Trophy also provides us with two of the best opening day match-ups. Swan River Rowing Club and Mercantile Rowing Club, both of Australia, meet for the right to face one of Upper Thames Rowing Club or Quintin Boat Club on Day Two, whilst St Andrew Boat Club ‘A’ will face their ‘B’ boat in a showdown of the Scots.
Meanwhile, the coxed fours threw up some intriguing potential contests. The Britannia Challenge Cup sees K.A.R.Z.V De Hoop of the Netherlands, who are regular competitors in The Thames Challenge Cup, racing against Avon Rowing Club of New Zealand on Day One, whilst The Prince Albert Challenge Cup pits a selected crew from Newcastle University against Yale University in the first round.
Quad’s The Name
The Queen Mother Challenge Cup for open Premier quads continues to deliver intrigue, and with the Italian and British national crews - who won gold and silver at the 2025 World Rowing Championships - kept apart in the Draw until Sunday, many will feel that has the potential to be one of the races of the Regatta.
To The Fawley Challenge Cup for open junior quads, where crews one, three and four from the National Schools’ Regatta all find themselves on the same side of the draw. If the holders and national champions from the Windsor Boys School can dispatch Sir William Borlase Grammar School in their quarterfinal, they may well find their next opponent to be Leander Club, who last won this Trophy in 2023 and were the fastest junior quad at Marlow Regatta. For the girls' junior quads in The Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup, Marlow Rowing Club - the current National Schools’ Regatta champions - and Wycliffe College - the holders - may well meet again in this year’s showpiece final, after the Draw kept them apart for another edition.
World-Class Quality
Although international racing schedules have meant we see a smaller entry for Premier events than in 2025, there is quality throughout. The Irish pairing of Timoney and Corrigan in The Silver Goblets and Nickalls’ Challenge Cup will fancy their chances of making Sunday’s final, whilst Anna Santruckova and Pavlina Flamikova of Sportovní Klub Hamr and Policejní Sportovní Klub Olymp, Czechia, will hope to bring the same form to Henley Royal Regatta that saw them win the first World Rowing Cup of the 2026 season.
Olympic Champions bring glitter and glamour to the two Trophies for double sculls. The New Zealand gold medallists from Paris, Lucy Spoors and Brooke Francis, are back in action for the first time since their remarkable gold and will meet a crew from the University of Iowa in the first round, who were beaten finalists at the 2026 Henley Women’s Regatta. The prospect of Olympic Champion Fintan McCarthy and his brother Jake taking on the 2025 World Rowing Championship silver medallists from Serbia in the semi-finals of The Double Sculls Challenge Cup will certainly be enough to bring crowds to the banks.
Oliver Zeidler will start his assault on a fifth Diamond Challenge Sculls title with a tricky contest against U23 world silver medallist Jelle Bakker of the Netherlands, whilst Lauren Henry begins her defence of The Princess Royal Challenge Cup title against the winner of either Leander’s Amelia Hempleman-Adams or Georgie Robinson-Ranger.
