A prime non-public faculty has mentioned it needs the Henley Regatta rowing occasion to stay a ‘closed store’, the race’s chairman has mentioned.
Sir Steve Redgrave, chairman of the Henley Royal Regatta, mentioned one main British non-public faculty feared opening up the Princess Elizabeth Problem Cup to worldwide groups would imply college students must compete towards ‘superclubs’.
It comes because the six-day regatta, which begins on Tuesday, will for the primary time enable worldwide entrants to the junior males’s eights, in addition to groups from British non-public and state colleges.
Sir Steve mentioned he attended a gathering of 55 colleges the place one non-public faculty, which he didn’t title, wished the cup to stay closed to worldwide rivals.
However he added it was going to occur ‘ultimately’ and it was the ‘proper factor to do’.
Sir Steve Redgrave (pictured), chairman of the Henley Royal Regatta and Olympian, mentioned one main British non-public faculty feared opening up the Princess Elizabeth Problem Cup to worldwide groups would imply college students must compete towards ‘superclubs’
It comes because the six-day regatta, which begins on Tuesday, will for the primary time enable worldwide entrants to the junior males’s eights, in addition to groups from British non-public and state colleges
In a podcast this month, Sir Steve was requested whether or not colleges, together with Eton School, St Paul’s College and St Edward’s College, must be involved concerning the rise of ‘huge US golf equipment coming over to race – they’re very quick’.
He mentioned: ‘A kind of prime colleges didn’t need it. However it was going to occur ultimately. We are able to’t cease this, in truth it’s the precise factor to do.’
Sir Steve defined that rowing cities in the US had been ‘big’ and golf equipment had been state-wide and never school-oriented like in Britain.
He mentioned this meant their rowing golf equipment had been a ‘little bit greater’ as a result of they draw upon rowers from extra colleges.
The chairman added: ‘What we don’t need is any nation to have the ability to put a crew collectively, which is nearly then a nationwide eight [team].
‘It’s not an occasion for nationwide eights – it’s for the highest juniors from their rowing institutions.’
The regatta close to Henley-on-Thames was established in 1839. The Princess Elizabeth Problem Cup started in 1946, however solely allowed entrants from public colleges
