The Big Green crew, winner of Eastern Sprints, Ivy League champion and a fourth-place finisher at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association national championship, will race for the Temple Challenge Cup in Britain. This race, open to eight-man crews from universities, colleges and schools, is one of the many races that will be held during the five days of the event.
Dartmouth's competition at the regatta ranges from familiar crews from Cornell and Brown to the defending champions, Oxford University.
Held in the town of Henley-on-Thames, about 40 miles outside of London, the regatta has been contested every year since 1839, except for brief absences during World War I and World War II.
Originally an amateur-only competition, the format was recently changed to allow professionals to compete. Henley conserves its older tradition by continuing to support amateur races.
Although the competition is open only to the most elite crews, Dartmouth's qualification to the Henley Regatta -- the team's first since 2003, was well deserved.
The Big Green first boat, of which all eight rowers and coxswain Joe Politi '08 were named first-team All-Ivy, had one of the lightweight program's most impressive seasons in recent memory this past spring. Wins over Yale and then-No. 1 Cornell, an Ivy League title and a victory in the highly prestigious Sprints championship helped Dartmouth earn an invitation to Britain.
The lightweight boat from Eastern Sprints, from bow to stern, was rowed by: Jon Kroft '07, Aaron Martin '09, captain Will Suto '07, Camden Place '07, Gabe Mahoney '08, Emerson Curry '08, David Smith '08, Anthony Fahden '08 and Politi.
The format of the Temple Challenge Cup is different from the dual races and mass meets that dotted Dartmouth's regular season schedule. Crews compete in tournament style, head-to-head knockout competition. The last Dartmouth crew to compete in the Henley reached the quarterfinals. This year's team hopes to emulate and improve on that result.
"The crew has earned this trip after its Eastern Sprints and Ivy League victories, having raced against some fantastic competition this season," head coach Steve Perry told dartmouthsports.com. "The rowers are excited to compete at this level and I am looking forward to watching them."
Preparation for the regatta has been steady since the end of the spring season. Following a fourth place finish at the IRA championships, losing by only two seconds to Cornell, the team has continued to train in Hanover as it anticipates the trip to Britain.
Prior to the Henley regatta, the team will compete in the Reading Town Regatta on Monday, June 30 in preparation for the Temple race.
The Henley takes place on a naturally straight portion of the River Thames. Two lines of wooden booms demarcate the course for the crews, leaving a few yards between the boats. Measuring 2,112 meters in length, the course has two intermediate time markers, along with other progress markers.
The regatta is famous for its blunt and distant live commentary, which is allowed to disclose only the stroke rate, the leading crew, and the progress marker being passed by each crew.
If last year's results are any indication, Dartmouth will face a tough test from both its American and international competitors.
Cornell, as repeat IRA champion this year and last year's Henley runner-up in the Temple Cup, will be the main domestic competitor for Dartmouth. The University of California at Berkeley, which has won three overall IRA titles, will also be a main contender for the title, hoping to improve upon its semifinal finish last year.
Oxford University, the returning titleholder of the Temple Cup, remains the odds-on favorite to defend its crown.
A potential sleeper for the title is the Nereus Rowing Club from Amsterdam, winner of the Temple Challenge in 2004 and also semifinalists last year. The club is perennially competitive in the race and is a main feeder for the Dutch national rowing program.
Dartmouth will not have to qualify to enter the bracket of 32 boats that will contest the cup, avoiding a long and arduous qualifying process that will whittle the number of boats down from 70. Instead of participating in the qualifying sessions that will take place on Friday, June 29, the Big Green will be able to adjust to the time difference between Hanover to London and train effectively to prepare for its chance at history the following weekend.
