Henley Royal Regatta 2012
Henley Royal Regatta 2012 was held from Wednesday 27 June to Sunday 1 July. There were 499 entries, 133 of them from overseas, and ten of the twenty trophies went abroad.
The regatta fell four weeks before the London Olympic Games, so most Olympic crews were absent. Heavy rain had left a strong stream, and with headwinds on top no course records were broken.
Finals
| Trophy | Boat | Winner | Runner-up | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Challenge Cup | Men’s eight | California R.C., USA | Brown University, USA | 1 1/4 lengths |
| Stewards’ Challenge Cup | Men’s coxless four | National Rowing Centre of Excellence ‘A’, Australia | Waiariki R.C., New Zealand | 2/3 length |
| Queen Mother Challenge Cup | Men’s quadruple scull | National Rowing Centre of Excellence, Australia | Victoria City R.C., Canada | 1 1/2 lengths |
| Silver Goblets and Nickalls’ Challenge Cup | Men’s pair | M. Molina and B. Lang, France | Christomanos and Lampridis, Greece | Easily |
| Double Sculls Challenge Cup | Men’s double scull | Collins and Sinclair, Leander Club | Berntsen and Grepperud, Norway | 4 1/4 lengths |
| Diamond Challenge Sculls | Men’s single scull | Lambert, South Africa | Collins, Agecroft R.C. | 3 1/4 lengths |
| Remenham Challenge Cup | Women’s eight | Western R.C., Canada | Dortmund Rowing Centre, Germany | 2 lengths |
| Princess Grace Challenge Cup | Women’s quadruple scull | National Rowing Centre of Excellence, Australia | Hollandia Roeiclub, Netherlands | Easily |
| Princess Royal Challenge Cup | Women’s single scull | I. Penney, Canada | Pajusalu, Estonia | Easily |
| Ladies’ Challenge Plate | Men’s eight | Harvard University, USA | Leander Club | 1 foot |
| Visitors’ Challenge Cup | Men’s coxless four | Oxford Brookes University and Molesey B.C. | A.S.R. Nereus, Netherlands | Easily |
| Prince of Wales Challenge Cup | Men’s quadruple scull | Leander Club | Durham University and University of London | 2 1/4 lengths |
| Thames Challenge Cup | Men’s eight | Molesey B.C. | Thames R.C. ‘A’ | 2 lengths |
| Wyfold Challenge Cup | Men’s coxless four | Nottingham R.C. ‘A’ | ANA Rowing Club, Australia | 2 lengths |
| Britannia Challenge Cup | Men’s coxed four | Star Club | Taurus B.C. | 3 feet |
| Temple Challenge Cup | Men’s eight | University of Washington, USA | Brown University, USA | 3 lengths |
| Prince Albert Challenge Cup | Men’s coxed four | University of London ‘A’ | Newcastle University | 3/4 length |
| Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup | Junior men’s eight | Abingdon School | Radley College | 3/4 length |
| Fawley Challenge Cup | Junior men’s quadruple scull | Sir William Borlase’s Grammar School | Marlow R.C. ‘A’ | 3/4 length |
| Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup | Junior women’s quadruple scull | Henley R.C. | Canford School | 2 1/2 lengths |
Winning times
The regatta’s own list of winners gives finishing times for five of these finals.
| Trophy | Winner | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Challenge Cup | California R.C. | 6:36 |
| Ladies’ Challenge Plate | Harvard University | 6:33 |
| Visitors’ Challenge Cup | Oxford Brookes University and Molesey B.C. | 7:24 |
| Britannia Challenge Cup | Star Club | 7:44 |
| Silver Goblets and Nickalls’ Challenge Cup | M. Molina and B. Lang | 8:22 |
Harvard’s winning time in the Ladies’ Plate was three seconds faster than California’s in the Grand, the senior event for eights, which was rowed straight afterwards.
The closest finals
Two finals were decided by a few feet.
Harvard beat Leander by one foot in the Ladies’ Plate after a photo finish. It was the eleventh Henley win for Harry Parker, Harvard’s coach for fifty years.
Star Club of Bedford beat Taurus by three feet in the Britannia. It was the club’s first Henley win in its own right in a 52-year history.
Other notes
- The Diamond Jubilee Challenge Cup for junior women’s quadruple sculls was raced for the first time. Henley Rowing Club’s girls won it on their home water.
- Abingdon School’s win in the Princess Elizabeth completed the schoolboy “triple” of the Schools’ Head, the National Schools’ Regatta and Henley for the second year in a row.
- Nottingham R.C. won at Henley for the first time since the city’s three clubs merged six years earlier.
- Australia’s National Rowing Centre of Excellence won three open events: the Stewards’, the Queen Mother and the Princess Grace.