ROWERS stirred up the glassy waters of the Wye on a beautiful Spring Bank Holiday weekend.

Some 800 competitors launched out in nearly 400 boats to race over Saturday’s 1500m course and Sunday’s 750m sprint.

And they warmed to their task despite the sweltering hot conditions, with some thrilling racing.

Old Monmothians containing Dan Taylor, Egor Tseliev, Ben Holley, Tomos Williams, Patrick Stubbs, Anthony Wright, Tom Griffiths, George Knight and cox Hattie McAninly secured the Blue Riband Phil Mathew Claret jug for Open 8s on day one against the likes of Cardiff University and Warwick University, winning the final from the River Taff outfit by 4L.

And on a great day for the OMs, they also boated their 1976 school 8 for a 50th anniversary row past, including two-time Olympic gold medal coach Robin Williams, the crew stopping beside Dixton Church to pay their respects with three cheers to late former coaches John Hartland and Phil Mathew where both are buried, and late crew member Chris Barnett.

The Women’s 8s saw no less than seven 8s battle it out for the Alec Woods Ladies Plate, with City of Oxford taking the silverware in the final by 2L from Warwick.

There were also strong showings from other Wye crews in defence of home waters, Monmouth Comprehensive’s rowers taking eight wins over the weekend.

The girls led the boys home in Sunday’s Sprint – Niamh Preston, Willow Smowton, Summer Anderson, Matilda Bryce and cox Lucas Walker remarkably out-powering the lads to take the U14 open quadruple sculls with wins over Haberdashers’ Monmouth, and then dead-heating with Gloucester in the final before winning the re-row by 1L.

It was Niamh’s last row with the school, as she’s heading off with her family to live in Australia, with club members gathering on the Monmouth RC slope to make a presentation to her at the end of racing.

Saturday also saw her win with Dylan Howes, Aled Phillips, Summer Anderson,and cox Rose Llewellyn in the mixed U15 quads, and on Sunday she also teamed up with Summer to take out the U14 girls’ doubles by 4L from Gloucester.

Seb Crane also took the U18 singles over the longer course by some 3L from his Hartpury opponent, while Charlie Grove also won the U15 singles by a margin from his Evesham opponent.

And Sunday saw another three wins alongside the girls’ quad and doubles successes, including Danny Meyrick-Laud winning the U14 sculls from his Haberdashers’ rival by 5L, and doubling up with victory in the mixed U15 quadruple sculls alongside Elis Phillips, Martha Willis, Jess Kirkwood and cox Phoebe Bambridge by just four foot from a crew of club mates.

Charlie Grove also beat his Bristol Ariel opponent to double up in the U15 singles.

But there was drama in the U18 doubles when the school duo looked to have it in the bag in a close race with Evesham only to hit the rushes in the bank two strokes from the line.

The regatta also proved successful for Haberdashers’ Monmouth, with a Saturday win from Staines in U15 quads, and Sunday triumph in the open fours from Cardiff University, plus victories in the open pairs, girls’ U15 doubles, the mixed U16 doubles, the girls’ U15 singles and the U14 doubles.

Organisers were also delighted to see four-time Olympian and Beijing bronze medallist Matt Wells racing and winning his single for Avon County, fresh from testing out a rowing machine in zero gravity with the European Space Agency!