HENLEY-ON-THAMES, England — The University of Washington men’s crew began its competition at the prestigious Henley Royal Regatta on Thursday with a comfortable victory over Collingwood College in the Visitors’ Challenge Cup on the River Thames.
The Visitors’ Challenge Cup is an event for coxless fours.
The Huskies got out to a quick start, seizing control of the race early and opening a significant lead by the quarter-mile mark. The Huskies maintained their lead throughout and rowed to victory in a time of 7 minutes, 20 seconds. The event was UW’s first race at regatta.
“We wanted to have a clean start and our guys were solid in managing the conditions,” Washington head coach Michael Callahan said in a press release. “This was our first time navigating this crowded course with the log booms and all the spectators on the water. This is a difficult boat class to row, without a coxswain, but it’s something we are comfortable with as part of our system at the University of Washington.”
Washington advances to the second round of the Visitors’ Challenge Cup on Friday. Also on Friday, the Huskies compete in the first round of the Ladies’ Challenge Plate (eights) against Princeton, the third-place team at the 2015 IRAs, and the Prince Albert Challenge Cup (coxed fours) with the opponent to be determined.
“At Henley its about advancing to the next day, and we’ve done that,” Callahan said. “We’re excited to have three races on Friday.”
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