Race Highlights: May 17-19
In a weekend full of top notch racing, national and conference titles were on the line across collegiate rowing, including barnburners at the ACRA Championship and men's Eastern Sprints, as ten DI women's conference champions were also named. The Final Olympic and Paralympic Qualification Regatta is still underway, awarding the final spots at the Paris Games on Tuesday, May 21.
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Eastern Sprints: In the race of the weekend, if not the year, the Brown heavyweight men came from fourth place to nip the undefeated Princeton varsity eight at the line by just eight-tenths of the second to win Eastern Sprints on Sunday. In the process, they passed defending champions Yale and former #1-ranked Harvard with an incredible sprint that caught even the live stream announcers unable to accurately call the finishing order. Though Princeton won the Rowe Cup, the team points award for the heavyweight men, their stated goal at the start of the season, they were surely disappointed to do so without gold in the premier event. Penn also had a historic day, winning the Jope Cup for overall lightweight points for the first time since 1967 as well as racing to their best finish in the heavyweight varsity eight, fifth, since 2002. Top-ranked Harvard came away with gold in the lightweight varsity eight.
Bears take gold in Varsity 8 for Eastern Sprints and Ivy League Title! #EverTrue https://t.co/KI6mSH2DTS
— Brown Men's Crew (@BrownU_MCrew) May 20, 2024
ACRA Championship: The largest regatta for collegiate crews, the ACRA Championship, wrapped up on Melton Lake in Oak Ridge, TN on Sunday, naming national champions for the collegiate club scene. With 301 crews from 68 different teams, the three-day regatta saw its fair share of tight racing. Notre Dame came away with their first ever national championship in the men’s varsity eight while Vanderbilt avenged last year’s silver medal by taking the gold in the women’s varsity eight. All racing was live streamed for free on YouTube and complete results are online.
DI Women’s Conference Championships: 10 DI women’s rowing conference championships concluded this weekend, setting half of the field for the NCAA Championship along with the AAC Championship that was held the weekend prior. The champions are: American Athletic Conference: SMU, Atlantic 10 Conference: Rhode Island, Atlantic Coast Conference: Syracuse, Big 12 Conference: Texas, Big Ten Conference: Michigan, Coastal Athletic Association: Northeastern, The Ivy League: Princeton, Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference: Jacksonville, Pac-12 Conference: Stanford, Patriot League: Boston University, and West Coast Conference: Gonzaga. The rest of the DI NCAA Championship field will be set at 5pm EST on Tuesday May 21 on the NCAA selection show.
World Rowing Final Olympic & Paralympic Qualification Regatta: The “last chance regatta,” also known as the “regatta of death,” wraps up tomorrow, Tuesday May 21, but has seen plenty of action already as all finals are now set. Seven spots are available across the five Paralympic boat classes and 30 are available in the fourteen Olympic boat classes. For everyone else, their 2024 Olympic dreams will end at the finish line. Seven U.S. crews are still in contention for Olympic berths. All races will be live streamed starting at 3am EST.
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