St Mary’s Dominate U16 Championships

On the 14th of July, 138 young rowers converged at the harbour to participate in the 2024 U16 Championships.

The anticipation had begun to build, especially with the addition of the Junior Series Event, the first of which was hosted by Fowey, and the Mixed Championships hosted by Caradon just the day before.

Newquay is infamous for its rolling swell and challenging conditions; however, it couldn’t have been more different. The water outside the harbour walls was like a millpond, possibly the calmest day we have ever seen at Newquay in fact.

Photo credit: Laura Lane

Pendeen withdrew their crew before racing commenced, which was a surprise given their win at the U14 Championships just a few weeks before.  Despite this news, favourites St Mary’s and Fowey A knew they still had their work cut out for them.

Each crew had the opportunity to race at least twice. Starting with four heats in Round 1, the apprehensive crews lined up to race a course that was, for some, much longer than they were used to. The slight mist in the distance added to the anticipation.

There was a great display of rowing from all crews and the winners of each heat progressed directly to the semifinals.

Winners of Round 1:

• Dart A
• Brixham A
• Cadgwith A
• St Mary’s A (fastest time in Round 1 – 10:10)

Joining the winners from Round 1 in the semifinal were the next fastest eight crews. The other eleven crews geared up to compete in the Plate races.

The Plate races featured open, mixed, and girls crews. A special shout-out to St Mary’s for entering three crews into the Championship.

The winners of the Plate Final were Mounts Bay who had a strong performance across the day. 

Photo credit: Laura Lane

Out of the 12 crews in the semifinal, only the winners of each heat would automatically progress to the final. The next fastest four crews anxiously awaited results to find out if they had produced a fast enough time to race again in the next round. It was an almighty battle for the final spot, and both heats of the semifinal were very exciting, with Fowey B just missing out by 7 seconds.

This meant it was an all-A crew battle for podium positions.

Starting off strongly, St Mary’s A had an almighty lead over the rest of the field by the first mark. There was a lot of excitement as crews watched Fowey A and Brixham A compete for 2nd place. Brixham A had a comfortable lead on their approach to the first mark, but with some tidy coxing, Fowey A started to close the gap once they rounded the buoy. Stroke by stroke, Fowey A was catching up to Brixham A.

Stream Team commentator Ben Banks expertly described it as; “real disciplined rowing from both crews.”

Photo credit: Laura Lane

It was a similar story for Cadgwith A and Newquay A as they headed into that first mark. Making the most of their home advantage, Newquay A began pulling away from Cadgwith A securing their 4th place position before they reached the 2nd mark. 

Finishing an incredible 1 minute 32 seconds ahead of 2nd place, St Mary’s A truly demonstrated their dominance. Such a substantial lead is rarely seen in a Championship final.

Final Results:

• 1st St Mary’s A 
• 2nd Fowey A 
• 3rd Brixham A 
• 4th Newquay A 
• 5th Cadgwith A 
• 6th Devoran A
• Dart – Fastest Girls Crew
• Devoran – Fastest Mixed Crew
• Plate Winners – Mounts Bay

A big thank you to Cornwall Heritage Trust for donating the wonderful plaques that were presented to all the finalists. 

This year’s U16 Championship had a real buzz about it. It was amazing to see so many young rowers enjoy the sport and getting stuck into some good racing. 

We are really looking forward to seeing how the juniors progress, particularly as they get to showcase their skills later this season at the brand new Junior International Pilot Gig Championships which is taking place at the Mount Batten Watersports Centre in Plymouth in October.